French TV: What future for NATO?

France Info interview (28 January) by OPEWI’s co-director Michael Benhamou on the isolation of French diplomats today in the face of turmoil in European defence:

1/ Deeply affected by Trump, some neighbours are swinging from one extreme (dependence on the US) to another (‘a European army now’);

2/ The challenge for French diplomacy is to bring our European allies to a point of equilibrium: a ‘European NATO’ that would allow for the calm organisation of the American withdrawal according to a more controlled timetable.

3/ Why this middle ground? Given Europe’s massive purchases of US equipment since 2022, there will be no ‘European army’ before at least 2050. Purchasing US weapons = legal standards + surveillance + maintenance = US control. So we must be content with a Europeanised NATO for now.

Full interview: https://www.franceinfo.fr/replay-magazine/franceinfo/sur-le-terrain/sur-le-terrain-du-28-janvier-2026-le-groenland-a-t-il-ete-un-electrochoc-utile-pour-l-europe_7771823.html#xtor=CS2-765-[autres]-