World
UK and France Sign Key Nuclear Deal
Amid new European security threats,
2 rivals will coordinate their arsenals, writes Judith Miller.
A
mid the pomp and pag- eantry — the carriage ride, elegant state dinner, and the cultural exchange of
priceless artifacts — French President Emmanuel Macron’s three-day sum- mit in July with U.K. Prime Minister Kier Starmer made real news. At the visit’s end, the leaders of
the neighboring countries, at odds for much of their history, agreed to “coor- dinate” Europe’s only two nuclear arsenals and their response to any “extreme” threat to Europe’s security. While much of the British news
coverage of Macron’s visit focused on British fury over migrants illegally crossing the English Channel in inflat- able dinghies, the so-called “North- wood Declaration” was a potentially significant moment in the nuclear age and an important step in repairing ties between Britain and Europe that were fractured by Britain’s decision in 2016 to quit the European Union. The agreement was the result of
twin security pressures facing the continent — the erosion of America’s credibility under President Donald Trump as an ally willing to use nucle-
50 NEWSMAX | SEPTEMBER 2025
Both leaders face low growth, soaring debt, resistance to reform, aging populations, and political pressure due to illegal migration.
ar weapons, if necessary, to defend Europe, and Russian President Vladi- mir Putin’s three-year-old war on Ukraine and his seeming impervious- ness to Western pressure to end his aggression. The words of the joint declaration
were carefully chosen and reflect its limitations. Defense experts were quick to note
that the U.K.-France pledge to “coor- dinate” their nuclear arsenals did not mean “shared.” Ever since President Charles de Gaulle, France has insisted on controlling its own nuclear arsenal. “Macron would love to bring Brit-
ain back into the European fold, part- ly to defuse European demands that France turn over its nuclear arsenal to the European Union,” said John Bolton, a former national security adviser to Trump who famously fell out with his erstwhile boss. “But politically, he cannot relin- quish control. He’s enough of a Napo-
leonist to resist that. Napoleonism is in a French leader’s bloodstream.” For his part, while Starmer wants
strategic insurance from Europe, he cannot afford to jeopardize his coun- try’s long-standing “special rela- tionship” with the U.S., upon which his own country’s nuclear arsenal depends. So, he must walk a fine line between
moving closer to France and hence, Europe, and not infuriating Trump by making the special relationship between Washington and London seem so obviously less special. Moreover, the Northwood Decla-
ration is a political life raft for both increasingly unpopular leaders. Both face low growth, soaring debt, resistance to reform, aging popula- tions, and political pressure due to ille- gal migration. While Macron cannot run again,
France’s far-right party headed by Marine Le Pen is expected to do well
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