STORY: France will increase the size of its nuclear arsenal and strengthen its deterrent, with an increasing risk of conflicts globally crossing the nuclear threshold, President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday (March 2).

Unveiling the update to France's nuclear doctrine at a nuclear base on the Atlantic coast, Macron also said a "major" change would see more cooperation with European allies that have expressed interest, including Germany.

Germany but also Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark would be able to take part in French nuclear wargames, Macron said, although he made clear decision-making on nuclear strikes will remain solely in the hands of the French president.

The French leader added it would be possible to establish, under unspecified circumstances, strategic assets in other European countries that would be part of what he called a new "forward deterrence" doctrine.

Though France and Britain are both nuclear powers, most European countries rely primarily on the United States for deterring any potential adversaries — a decades-old pillar of transatlantic security.

But Trump's rapprochement with Russia on the Ukraine war and his harsher posture towards traditional allies have rattled European governments.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

VIDEO SHOWS: FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, MAKING SPEECH AT FRENCH SUBMARINE BASE AND SAYING FRANCE WILL INCREASE ITS NUCLEAR ARSENAL

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: SOUNDBITES OVERLAID WITH CUTAWAYS THROUGHOUT

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: L’ILE LONGUE, FRANCE (MARCH 2, 2026) (ECPAD - must on-screen courtesy 'ECPAD', editorial use only, no new uses after April 1, 2026)

1. VARIOUS OF FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, ARRIVING TO GIVE SPEECH IN DRY DOCK OF NUCLEAR SUBMARINE

2. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING:

"The evolution of the defences of our competitors, the emergence of regional powers, the possibility of coordination between adversaries and the risks linked to proliferation - all this, after a meticulous examination, has led me to this conclusion: an enhancement of our arsenal is indispensable."

3. AUDIENCE LISTENING TO MACRON

4. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING (ENDS ON WIDE SHOT OF MACRON ON STAGE):

"I have ordered an increase in the number of nuclear warheads in our arsenal. To put an end to any speculation, we will no longer communicate on the figures of our nuclear arsenal, contrary to what may have been the case in the past. To be free, therefore, one must be feared. And to be feared, one must be powerful. This increase in our arsenal attests to this."

5. MACRON SPEAKING ON STAGE

6. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING:

"France will therefore always assume alone, while integrating into its considerations the interests of our allies, the deliberate crossing of the nuclear threshold. Forward deterrence is a progressive approach. It offers, first of all, the possibility for partners to participate in deterrence exercises. This may also involve signalling, including beyond our strict borders, or the conventional participation of allied forces in our nuclear activities. It may finally foresee, depending on circumstances, the deployment of elements of strategic force with our allies."

7. AUDIENCE LISTENING

8. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING (ENDS ON WIDE SHOT OF MACRON ON STAGE):

"Germany will naturally be a key partner in this effort, the most ambitious in the spirit of the Aachen Treaty. The first stages of cooperation will begin this year and may include visits to strategic sites and joint exercises. From now on, other countries have accepted this dialogue. And beyond our British and German partners and friends already mentioned, Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Sweden and Denmark will join it. This is a genuine strategic convergence between our countries, of a nature to give real depth to the defence of our continent."

9. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING:

"As for our American allies, who themselves are modernising their arsenal, they have played since 1945 and will continue to play a key role in the defence of Europe. We are grateful to them for this. And in terms of deterrence, they participate directly in our protection with NATO’s nuclear mission. But their recent national security and defence strategy shows a re‑arrangement of American priorities and a strong encouragement for Europe to take more direct care of its own security. We must hear this invitation to take more firmly in hand our destiny and, as you know, I have said nothing different since the first day of my first term."

10. SUBMARINE DRYDOCK

11. (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENT, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING:

"The half‑century to come will be an age of nuclear weapons. France, determined, free, confident, will fully play its role in it. It will continue to strengthen itself and, for its own benefit, it will anchor this course on the Atlantic to the European foundation. This is my message today. Let us be powerful, let us be united, let us be free. Long live the Republic! Long live France!"

12. VARIOUS OF AUDIENCE APPLAUDING

13. MACRON LOOKING ON

L’ILE LONGUE, FRANCE (MARCH 2, 2026) (AGENCY POOL - Access all)

14. VARIOUS OF SERVICE MEMBERS STANDING ON SUBMARINE AHEAD OF WELCOME CEREMONY

NORTHERN FRANCE (MARCH 2, 2026) (AGENCY POOL - Access all)

15. VARIOUS OF RAFALE JETS ACCOMPANYING PLANE CARRYING MACRON TO L’ILE LONGUE