Overview

• Macron pledged an additional €3.5 billion in 2026 and €3 billion in 2027 to push France’s defence budget to €64 billion by 2027, achieving a doubling of 2017 spending.
• The updated National Strategic Review calls for overhauls across defence doctrine, the industrial base and strategic thinking to address shifting security challenges.
• General Thierry Burkhard has identified Russia’s enduring threat to Europe, U.S. strategic retrenchment and rising hybrid warfare and disinformation campaigns as top concerns.
• DGSE chief Nicolas Lerner has underscored heightened risks to French security during the war in Ukraine and global strategic uncertainty.
• These moves come as France faces over €62 billion in annual debt servicing costs and as Germany, Poland and the U.K. also boost their military investments.