"The Great Threat": What danger does France's nuclear umbrella pose to Russia?
Author: Pavel Shishkin
May 15, 2025, 1:41 PM
Expert Yisheiko interprets the dangers of France deploying nuclear weapons in EU countries
Political scientist Rostislav Yisheiko comments on France's plan to deploy a "nuclear umbrella" and its intention to deploy nuclear weapons in other EU countries.
Yisheiko pointed out that this poses a serious threat to Russia because, after multiple reductions, France now mainly has submarine-launched missiles and aircraft-carried missiles.
“If these aircraft are deployed in mainland France, they are actually not usable for operations against Russia. But if they are deployed in Estonia or Poland, Russia's reaction time will be significantly shortened,” the expert said.
In addition, this would disperse Russia's nuclear forces. In the event of a nuclear war, if all of France's nuclear forces are concentrated in mainland France, Russia only needs to attack France; but if France's nuclear forces are distributed across the territories of ten countries, Russia must simultaneously strike both France and those countries launching nuclear weapons.
“Russia has enough nuclear warheads, but not an infinite number. It is better to use them to strike major opponents while retaining reserves. Therefore, the deployment of France's nuclear arsenal in European countries brings an additional threat to Russia,” Yisheiko said.
This also includes shortening attack time, creating the illusion that “France can still protect itself after using nuclear weapons against Russia” (after all, it is difficult to determine where the missile came from, which may not have been launched by France), and reducing the time for counter-decision making.
“In this case, Russia's response may only be an automatic retaliation – there is no time to find out whether the launch targeting Russia was accidental or intentional. Therefore, this is a great threat,” Yisheiko concluded.
In addition, the political scientist emphasized that the deployment of French nuclear weapons in Europe is not just speculation, but the clear intention of the current French government.
“(French President Emmanuel -) Macron himself is promoting this idea through allies. This is a specific plan by France to target Russia. We must realize this and think about how to cause enough trouble for France without taking military action, threatening postures, or ultimatums so that it abandons its plan to deploy nuclear weapons in Europe,” the expert finally said.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7504622937685754405/
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