Macron's address to the French nation, addressing concerns on Russia

6/3/2025 6:07

French President Emmanuel

Macron on Wednesday said he was willing to discuss offering

European allies the protection of France's nuclear capabilities,

adding that Russia represented a genuine threat to the

continent's security with U.S. military support no longer

guaranteed.







Below are some of the key quotes from his prime time address

to the nation.







RUSSIAN THREAT



"Overall, our prosperity and security have become more

uncertain. It must be said that we are entering a new era."







"Russia has already made the Ukrainian conflict a global

conflict. It has mobilized North Korean soldiers and Iranian

equipment on our continent, while helping these countries to arm

themselves more."







"President Putin's Russia violates our borders to

assassinate opponents, manipulates elections in Romania and

Moldova, and organizes cyber attacks on our hospitals to block

their operation. Russia is trying to manipulate our opinions

with lies spread on social networks. And deep down, it is

testing our limits. It does it in the air, at sea, in space and

behind our screens."







"Who can believe, in this context, that Russia will stop at

Ukraine? Russia has become, as I speak to you and for years to

come, a threat to France and Europe."







"Faced with this world of danger, remaining a spectator

would be madness. It is a question, without further delay, of

making decisions for Ukraine, for the security of the French,

for the security of Europeans."







END OF US SUPPORT?



"I want to believe that the United States will stand by us.

But we have to be ready if that is not the case."







"Given the Russian threat that I have just described,

European states must be able to defend themselves better and

deter any aggression ... We must equip ourselves better, raise

our defence posture, and this for peace, even to deter. In this

respect, we remain committed to NATO and our partnership with

the United States of America. But we must do more. Strengthen

our independence in defence and security matters."







"The future of Europe does not have to be decided in

Washington or Moscow. And yes, the threat is returning to the

East and the innocence, so to speak, of the last 30 years, since

the fall of the Berlin Wall, is now over."







RAMPING UP FRENCH DEFENCE PREPARATION



"I have asked the government to be mobilized so that, on the

one hand, it strengthens our armies as quickly as possible. And

on the other hand, it accelerates reindustrialization in all our

regions. And I will gather with the competent ministers and the

industrialists of the sector in the coming days."







"We will have to make new budgetary choices and additional

investments that have now become essential. I have asked the

government to work on this as quickly as possible. These will be

new investments that require mobility, to mobilize private

financing, but also public financing, without taxes being

increased. For this, reforms, choices, and courage will be

needed."







DEBATE ON SHARING FRENCH NUCLEAR UMBRELLA



"Responding to the historic call of the future German

Chancellor, I have decided to open the strategic debate on the

protection of our allies on the European continent through our

(nuclear) deterrence. Whatever happens, the decision has always

been and will remain in the hands of the President of the

Republic, head of the armed forces."







IMPACT OF TARIFFS



"(U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs) decision,

incomprehensible both for the American economy and for ours,

will have consequences ... It increases the difficulty of the

moment, but it will not go without a response from us. So, while

preparing the response with our European colleagues, we will

continue ... to do everything to convince that this decision

would harm us all. And I hope, yes, to convince and dissuade the

President of the United States of America."







EUROPE'S FUTURE



"Tomorrow's solutions cannot be yesterday's habits."







"Europe has the economic strength, the power and the talent

to live up to this era and to compare ourselves to the United

States of America, let alone Russia. We have the means. So we

must act united as Europeans and determined to protect

ourselves."







"Our generation will no longer receive the dividends of

peace. It is up to us to ensure that our children reap the

dividends of our commitments tomorrow."