President Emmanuel Macron is updating France's nuclear deterrence doctrine as Europe worries about Russia and doubts U.S. protection under Donald Trump. On Monday, Macron will speak at a French submarine base and signal how France thinks about using nuclear weapons. The war in Ukraine and Russia's nuclear threats have shaken Europe's security assumptions. Analysts say some Europeans are looking to France for a backup nuclear guarantee. France is the only nuclear power in the European Union. Macron last laid down policy in 2020 and said France has fewer than 300 warheads. Experts are listening for any stronger promise to protect allies.
Saudi Arabia could have some form of uranium enrichment within the kingdom under a proposed nuclear deal with the United States. That's according to congressional documents and an arms control group. Both U.S. Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden tried to reach a nuclear deal with the kingdom to share American technology. Nonproliferation experts warn any spinning centrifuges within Saudi Arabia could open the door to a possible weapons program for the kingdom. The kingdom's assertive crown prince has suggested he could pursue a nuclear weapon if Tehran obtains an atomic bomb.
The Kremlin says it regrets the expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms pact between Russia and the United States, while President Donald Trump declared he was against keeping its limits and wants a better deal. The end of the New START treaty left no caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than half a century, fueling fears of a new nuclear arms race. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed readiness Thursday to stick to the pact's limits for another year if Washington agreed. But Trump said he wants a new pact. The treaty was signed in 2010. It was extended in 2021 for five more years.
