Germany is open to Macron offering nuclear protection for Europe news
Friedrich Mertz, the leader of the conservatives who are in the German legislative elections, reiterated his openness to Paris’s offer to provide a protection umbrella to Europe by French nuclear arsenal, at a time when the Europeans doubt the commitment of US President Donald Trump to continue supporting NATO (NATO).
“We simply must be stronger together in nuclear deterrence in Europe,” Mertz said, in an interview with Deutschendfone Radio on Sunday.
He added that discussions must also include Britain, which is also a nuclear force.
France and Britain are the only two nuclear powers in Western Europe.
Mertz pointed out that the changing global security situation requires Europeans to discuss this issue together.
On Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron expressed his willingness to open a discussion about the expansion of the nuclear deterrent force that France has to include other European countries, after Mertz invited in this regard.
This came after Mertz said last month that he wanted a discussion about “nuclear participation” with Paris and London.
Steps come after Trump started his second unlikely presidential term, unlike American policy path towards Ukraine, expressing fears of a historical break with Europe.
In the Sunday interview, Mertz stressed that any discussions in Europe will take place, taking into account “the promotion of the American nuclear umbrella, which we want, of course, to maintain it.”
He also explained that “Germany will not be able, or allowed to possess nuclear weapons.”
It is noteworthy that Germany cannot possess its own nuclear weapons, as this constitutes a violation of the international treaty to prevent nuclear proliferation, which is affiliated with Berlin.
With Trump’s spacing and European allies, some in Germany, including politicians from the Right -wing alternative party for Germany, called for Berlin to possess nuclear weapons.
These developments, which is being conglomery (the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union), prompted negotiations to form a coalition government with the Social Democratic Party, to declare plans last week for huge defensive investments.
