After one year of war in Ukraine, it is evident that European countries must significantly increase their defence spending and rebuild their capabilities. Whilst it is true that Germany has taken some independent steps forward regarding defence, this is not detrimental to collective European defence efforts. In fact, greater Franco-German cooperation (and a more defence-minded Germany in general) will be absolutely crucial for strengthening European defence efforts and Europe’s overall autonomy.
During the recent Munich Security Conference, Chancellor Scholz insisted on the need for the EU to strategically pull their efforts together over armaments policy. President Macron further called for an ambitious European programme for defence investments which could be pursued through the European Defence Fund. Most importantly, Macron further invited his European partners to consider the importance of the nuclear factor in the current conflict and thus the role of nuclear deterrence for Europe’s security, and how the EU and NATO can better complement each other.