French and Polish leaders discussed holding joint exercises on Monday as part of a French-led effort to include allies in its nuclear deterrent.
“Among the things we will consider there will be exchanges of information, joint exercises,” French President Emmanuel Macron said at a news conference in the Polish port city of Gdańsk when asked about France working with Poland on nuclear issues.
France is the European Union’s only nuclear power. Earlier this year Macron announced “a new phase in French deterrence,” a historic shift that would see other European countries play an enlarged role in deterrence, starting with participation in nuclear drills.
Cooperation in so-called forward deterrence includes Poland as well as Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark and Sweden.
Poland, which doesn’t take part in the U.S. nuclear-sharing program, is interested in firming up European deterrence against Russia.
“We’ve decided to join a group of countries invited by France to cooperate,” said Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. “An exclusive group made up of countries who understand the need for European sovereignty. We live in a world in which we need nuclear dissuasion capacities.”
France is adamant that final control on the use of its nuclear weapons must rest with Paris, but there is some talk of eventually basing French nuclear-armed warplanes in allied countries.
“In all frankness, having Rafales with atomic bombs above Poland is not my dream, but I hope you do not have such plans,” Tusk told Macron.
Macron said his team would be discussing options with their Polish counterparts to get operations set up “in the coming months.”
Tusk also lauded France’s commitment to protecting Poland’s eastern borders — which include its frontiers with Belarus and the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad.
He mentioned the possibility of having France take part in securing the Rzeszów–Jasionka Airport, which plays a crucial role in the shipment of arms and humanitarian goods to Ukraine.
France and Poland also signed agreements to deepen defense ties in space and military planning, starting with the planned Polish purchase of a French military telecoms satellite by the end of the year.
The defense ministers of both countries will also roll out a bilateral defense cooperation plan for 2026–2028 aimed at scaling up joint military activities and coordination, Macron’s office said.
Source:
www.politico.eu
