On 13 July, 2025, in his annual address to French armed forces, President Emmanuel Macron announced increases in defence spending to take place over the course of the next two (and final) years of his presidency. Framed as necessary to face a turbulent and imminently threatening security environment, these announcements come amidst heightened domestic political tensions over skyrocketing national debt and the controversial and austere 2026 budget proposal to reign it in. In his speech, Macron called on Europe to ensure its own security (in line with his push for ‘strategic autonomy’) while also protecting its economic, political, and democratic models from attempts at outside interference. To ready France to confront the complexities of a dangerous world, Macron announced an exceptional spending increase of €3.5 billion in 2026 and €3 billion in 2027 on top of the amounts already allocated in the Military Programming Law 2024-2030 (Loi de programmation militaire, or LPM).
What to Make of Macron’s Recent Defence Spending Commitments? | Royal United Services Institute
