Macron pledges billions in extra defence funding for French army

France’s Armed Forces will see an extra €6.5 billion in funding over the next two years, President Emmanuel Macron announced in a speech to the French army last night.

The increases – €3.5 billion in 2026 and a further €3 billion in 2027 – means the defence budget will have doubled from its 2017 rate, reaching over €64 billion.

Initially planned to double by 2030, global political instability has made the president re-evaluate the importance of the defence budget. 

“No one can stand still,” when it comes to defence spending, he said in the traditional annual speech to the army on the eve of the July 14 military parade. 

“We have a lead, but tomorrow, at the same pace, we'll be overtaken,” he said. 

“Not since 1945 have we faced such a threat to liberty,” he added.

An outline on how the money will be spent – and funded – will come in the autumn, the president said, as the military planning law is updated as part of the annual budget.

In March, the president said an increase to defence spending would not come via tax rises on the public, but from a mix of ‘private and public funding’. 

He also argued such increases should be omitted from EU debt calculations, and come alongside greater EU defence harmony.

Pleas to MPs to pass budget 

However, for any funds to be allocated, MPs will need to vote in favour of the 2026 budget which could pose a stumbling block. 

The 2025 budget was delayed after former prime minister Michel Barnier was ousted in a vote of no confidence, after attempting to push through the plans without a vote by MPs. 

The chamber has a similar political make-up, split roughly in thirds between the far-left/left, centre/right and far-right meaning current prime minister François Bayrou will need to find support from one of the two wings to avoid a rejection of his budget. 

However Mr Macron said “end-of-year censures have a simple consequence: they shift the budget for the armed forces.” 

“Our military independence is inseparable from our financial independence, so it will be financed by more activity and more production,” he added. 

“It is a one-off effort by all…if our freedom has a price, here it is.”