Polish presidential aide questions France's role in any Europe nuclear plan, backs US

WARSAW, Feb 27 - Poland is sceptical of France's role in a potential European nuclear-deterrence plan and sees only the United States as a credible nuclear partner for now, the president's top security adviser said. Read more at straitstimes.com.

WARSAW, Feb 27 - Poland is sceptical of France's role in a potential European nuclear-deterrence plan and sees only the United States as a credible nuclear partner for now, the president's top security adviser said.

Earlier this month, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Berlin had opened discussions with France, the EU's only nuclear power since Britain left the bloc, on a possible continent-wide deterrent.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said Poland has begun talks with France too but stressed he needs specifics before discussing any membership of any European programme.

Slawomir Cenckiewicz, head of Warsaw's National Security Bureau, said that Poland should monitor the Berlin-Paris talks, but prioritise NATO's existing nuclear-sharing programme - allowing non-nuclear allies to host and deliver U.S. warheads - to counter potential Russian threats.

Cenckiewicz said the French doctrine would place full control of the nuclear weapons in the hands of the French president - something that Emmanuel Macron himself is set to spell out on Monday.

He said the use of nuclear weapons under NATO's collective-defence clause, Article 5, which treats an attack on one as an attack on all, should be an allied decision.