French President Emmanuel Macron has stated that his country will not use nuclear weapons in response if Russia launches a nuclear attack on Ukraine. Political opponents and experts began to criticize him for this.
Politico writes about it.
He noted that France "obviously" will not use nuclear weapons in response.
"France has a nuclear doctrine that is based on the countryʼs vital interests and is clearly defined. They would not be in danger if there was a ballistic nuclear attack in Ukraine or in the region," Macron noted.
After this statement, the French president was criticized for abandoning a strategy of uncertainty in response to Putinʼs nuclear threats. The West tries not to publicly announce any of its possible reactions, so that the Russian Federation cannot assess the risks and prepare for them.
"The credibility of the [nuclear] conviction depends on us not saying anything about what we will have to do," noted former French President Francois Hollande.
He also emphasized that it is worth "saying as little as possible and being ready to do as much as possible."
Also, such statements by Macron caused concern in Eastern European countries that are in NATO. After all, they now have no certainty that other members of the Alliance will be ready to protect them, as stipulated in the NATO charter.
"This is a political mistake. One of the principles of nuclear deterrence is that there is uncertainty about what counts as a vital interest," the Conservative MP Jean-Louis Thierault, vice-president of the National Assemblyʼs armed forces committee noted.
Macron was criticized even in other countries. In particular, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace accused the French president of "opening the cards". In fact, it violates the common Western policy of deterrence.
"We believe that if Russia used nuclear weapons, it would have serious consequences for Russia. This would be a violation of the 1945 taboo on the use of nuclear weapons. And that would leave her incredibly isolated from the rest of the world,” Wallace stated.
- Earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with the BBC that Russia had begun to prepare its society for a nuclear strike, but added that he did not believe in the use of tactical nuclear weapons.
- The Secretary General of NATO said that the forces of the Alliance plan to conduct nuclear deterrence exercises. NATO said that a Russian nuclear strike on Ukraine would almost certainly trigger a "physical response" from the Allies.