Transcript of President Emmanuel Macron’s Speech Calling For Major European Rearmament

Read the full transcript of President Emmanuel Macron’s talk speech on March 5, 2025.

Listen to the audio version here:

TRANSCRIPT:

FRENCH PRESIDENT EMMANUEL MACRON: French citizens, I’m speaking to you tonight in light of the current international climate and the consequences that will have on Europe and France. From a diplomatic point of view, you are quite rightly concerned about the historical events that are taking place right now and that are shaking up the world order.

The war in Ukraine, which has already caused millions of deaths and displaced persons, is continuing in our region. Support to Ukraine is uncertain. And yet, at the same time, the United States of America are striving to implement tariffs on products being sent out from Europe. And the world is continuing to be as brutal as ever and the terrorist threat is still as present as ever. Yet our prosperity and our security have become as uncertain as ever before.

It is with clarity that I can say that we are moving into a new era. The war in Ukraine has been ongoing for some three years now. We took decisions to sanction Russia and we were right in doing so, because it’s not just the Ukrainian people who are fighting bravely for their safety, but it is our very security that is under threat.

Having a country invading their neighbour with impunity, that is a dire message for the rest of the world, saying that peace is under threat around the world. And we have learnt from the mistakes of the past.

The Russian Threat to European Security

The Russian threat is ever present and is on European borders. It is affecting all of us. Russia has already turned the war in Ukraine into a global conflict. We have North Korean soldiers, we have Iranian forces, all seeking to bolster their forces. Russia is crossing borders to influence what is happening in Moldova, in Romania. They are impeding the operations of our hospitals. They are spreading lies on social media and they are pushing our limits. They are doing it in the air, on the soil and in space and even on our screens.

It seems that this war knows no bounds. Russia is continuing to weaponise, increasing budgets. By now, in 2030, Russia is going to increase the scope of its army with 1.5 million additional soldiers, 7,000 tanks and 1,500 fighter jets. So given that observation, who is going to say that Russia is going to stop at Ukraine?

Russia has become, now and will continue to be a threat for France and for Europe. It is with deep regret that I make such an observation. But I am convinced that in the long term, peace will return to Europe, with Russia once again peaceful. But the current situation is what it is and we have to deal with it as it is.

France’s Action Plan for Ukraine and European Security

Given the world of danger that we live in, standing idly by would be madness. So we have to take decisions now for Ukraine, for the security of French people, for Europe.

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First for Ukraine. All peace initiatives are heading in the right direction and we welcome progress being made. We need to continue enabling Ukrainians to resist so that they can end up in a stable situation for themselves and stability for us as well. And that is why peace cannot be achieved by abandoning Ukraine.

Peace cannot come at any price. And it cannot come from Russia dictating the terms. Peace for Ukraine cannot come with the collapse of Ukraine. And we have seen this happen in the past. Who can forget that this invasion started back in 2014 and that there was a ceasefire that was agreed to in Minsk and that same Russia did not uphold the ceasefire agreement.

So we cannot have stability without robust guarantees. We cannot take them at their word. Ukraine has a right to peace and security for itself and it is in our interest and it is in the interest of security in Europe.

And that is why we are working closely with our British, German allies and many other European nations. That is why you have seen me in these past few weeks engage with numerous of these people in Europe, in London, to draft the commitments that are the base requirements for Ukraine.

For us to sign a peace agreement where Ukraine will no longer be invaded by Russia, we have to do so by supporting the Ukrainian troops in the mid-term. It may require further European forces to be deployed. Russia is… This war is not going to be just on the war fronts. This is a fight that we need to fight to ensure stability. And that is why the heads of armies in Europe are going to meet to ensure that we can come to an agreement.

We need to come up with a long-term peace plan. One that we can continue to change. This is what we have prepared with a number of European partners and Ukraine. This is what I went to present to the United States just a few days ago. And I want to believe that the United States will stay by our side, but they will need to be… But we need to be ready if that were not the case.

European Defense and Rearmament

Whether we come to peace now or in a somewhat distant future, Europe needs to be able to better defend itself and to deter other forms of invasion. Whatever the case may be, we need to arm ourselves more. We need to bolster our defence positions. We need to deter. And that is why we uphold NATO and our partnership with the United States of America.

But we need more. We need to reinforce our own defence and security capabilities. The future of Europe is not going to be decided by Russia or by Washington. So yes, once again, the threat is now coming from the east.

And this is a stark reminder of what has happened over the past 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall. We have now moved into a new era.

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So we have the meeting of the heads of state and government of Europe at the Council. And we will take numerous decisions. Things that France has been suggesting and proposing for many years. Increasing military budgets so that they can no longer be accounted for as a state deficit. Enabling nations to buy munitions, weapons, military equipment from European nations.

We have been working so that we can better arm our military as fast as possible. And that means re-industrialising our region. I will sit down with competent ministers and industrial partners in the near future to discuss such a future.

What we have been defending for the past eight years is now a reality. We need to ensure that Europeans are ready to defend ourselves. We need to ensure that our European nations can properly defend and cooperate. And what I’m seeing now is a good thing.

We have Germany, Poland, Denmark, the Baltic states and numerous partners who have also announced that they are going to increase military spending. So with now action being taken, France has a unique role to play.

France’s Military Position and Nuclear Deterrence

We have the most effective army and military in all of Europe. This is something that we have been bolstering since the end of the Second World War. Our nuclear capacity. And this gives us a certain position which is different to our neighbours.

We didn’t have to wait for an invasion in Ukraine for us to understand that we had to increase military spending. And this is what we have put through in numerous budgets to Parliament. We have doubled our military spending in the past ten years.

Given the threats and the acceleration of events, we have to make new budgetary decisions, additional spending, which are now essential. I have asked the government to work on such a budget as rapidly as possible. This will mean new investment that we will have to reach out to private funding and public funding. Again, without increasing taxes. But for that, that means reform, choices, and it requires courage on our behalf.

Our nuclear deterrence protects us. It is French from A to Z. It has been in place ever since 1964 and it has always played an essential role in ensuring peace and security in Europe. But when we want to reach out to our German Chancellor, a new German Chancellor, we want to ensure that that deterrence applies to all European allies.

Whatever may come to be, that decision to use the nuclear deterrence will always remain in the hands of the French President and head of the armed forces.

Economic Independence and International Trade

So we can ensure our independence through military means, but also through economic means, because economic independence is essential for us. We need to prepare ourselves for a world where the United States of America will decide to implement greater tariffs on European products, which is what the President has just announced for Canada and Mexico.

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So this is going to have a negative impact on both the American economy and the French economy, the European economy. It will exacerbate current difficulties that we are all facing, but it will not go without a response from us.

We are working on a response plan with European partners and in the meantime, we will continue to strive to convince the powers to be that that will have a negative impact on all. So we will have to convince and discourage the President of the United States of America from taking such action.

So this is a time where we will have to make decisions like we’ve never had to do before, in terms of agriculture, research, our industry, for all public policy. The discussions that we’re going to have will have to change. And that is why I have called on the Prime Minister and the government and in fact, I call upon all economic trade union operators to work together to come forward with proposals given the new global context.

A Call for Unity and Determination

The decisions that we will make in the coming days and years cannot be based upon past experience. Decisions that are happening now and what is happening now will change the world for the future. We cannot give in to defeatism.

France will head towards a single goal, one of peace and freedom, true to its history, true to its own principles. Yes, this is what we believe in for our security, for our safety, but this is what we believe because it is a way of defending democracy. A belief in truth, in freely seeking respect within our societies, a freedom of expression, which is not just opening up avenues for hate speech. This is what we believe in.

Our Europe has the economic power, the talent to be able to step up to the plate and we have the means. Therefore, we now need to act united as Europeans determined to protect ourselves. And that is why the French nation needs you. Political decisions, military equipment, that is just one part of the puzzle, but it will never replace the power that comes with the soul of a nation.

Our generation will not be able to just live off the dividends of peace. It is up to us to sow the seeds for the future. So together we will stand through. Long live the French Republic. Long live France.