
Trump prompts European calls for a homegrown nuclear umbrella
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. PARIS—Two weeks after Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, French President Emmanuel Macron descended 20 stories beneath Paris to send a message to Moscow. He entered France’s nuclear bunker deep under his regal presidential palace to lead an exercise dubbed Poker.
Officials had chosen that night, in March 2022, for its clear skies. They wanted to respond to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who days earlier had made a thinly veiled threat to the West by putting his country’s nuclear forces on high alert. Commanders waited for a Russian spy satellite to pass over their distant airfield and launched drills they were confident the Kremlin would watch, according to French officials.
Rafale fighter jets took off carrying dummy weapons to simulate attacks on an unnamed country—part of a high-stakes pantomime that strategists call nuclear signaling. France is unusual in its ability to send such signals. Of the world’s eight declared nuclear powers, France and Britain are the only ones in Europe.
The biggest nuclear power in the region is the U.S.—North Atlantic Treaty Organization allies Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Turkey host American nuclear weapons on bases within their borders. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about putting nuclear deterrence forces on high alert on Feb. 27, 2022.
Now U.S. protection is looking increasingly shaky after President Trump’s diplomatic opening to Russia, temporary halt of aid to Ukraine and antagonism toward Europe. That’s led to growing calls for a European nuclear umbrella tapping the arsenals of France and Britain, independent of the U.S.
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