President Emmanuel Macron will attempt to assure allies that France hasn’t changed its nuclear strategy when he presents the country’s new military goals in the southern city of Toulon on Wednesday, according to Bloomberg.
In a televised interview last month, the French leader said he would not respond in kind to a tactical nuclear attack by Russia on Ukraine, or in the region.
That led to a heated discussion at home and abroad about what Macron meant and why he was discussing a taboo topic. Some wondered if he was preparing to alter the French nuclear doctrine, which only allows the use of such weapons to defend the country’s vital interests without clearly defining them.
Macron is constantly fighting criticism that he is soft on Vladimir Putin, especially in eastern Europe, as he has sought to maintain dialogue with the Russian president, and the comments also stoked that perception in some quarters.
The event in Toulon marks the strategic review of French defense ambitions for 2030. The country is the only one in the European Union equipped with nuclear weapons, which account for around 20% of its current defense budget.
The French president spoke in October shortly after Putin suggested he would resort to tactical nuclear weapons, but there was no sense the Russian president was moving nuclear assets.