Politics

Polish president wants French nuclear umbrella to protect against Russian threat

Polish President Andrzej Duda in the Presidential Palace in Warsaw on February 24, 2025. Photo: Dominika Zarzycka/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Polish President Andrzej Duda in the Presidential Palace in Warsaw on February 24, 2025. Photo: Dominika Zarzycka/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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Polish President Andrzej Duda told French broadcaster LCI in an interview on Sunday that he favored France extending its nuclear umbrella to cover Poland.

French President Emmanuel Macron proposed extending his country’s nuclear defense system in a televised address to the nation on Wednesday while warning against the Russian threat to Europe.

As military support for Ukraine from the U.S. under Donald Trump’s administration began to falter, European leaders have scrambled to boost defense spending and tighten cooperation on military strategies.

The French nuclear deterrent is air- and sea-based, with Rafale fighter jets and nuclear submarines being able to strike at any time, on the instruction of the French president alone.

The brainchild of the Cold War era French President Charles de Gaulle, it was designed to be entirely independent from the United States.
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