UK’s RAF holds first-ever joint nuclear drill with France in warning to Putin
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- Britain and France have conducted their first joint exercise involving France’s airborne nuclear deterrent, according to the French armed forces ministry.
- British Typhoon jets participated alongside French Rafale warplanes, with French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin saying the exercise demonstrated growing nuclear cooperation between the two countries.
Britain and France have conducted their first joint exercise involving France’s airborne nuclear deterrent, marking a new step in military cooperation between the two European nuclear powers, the French armed forces ministry said Friday.
British Typhoon fighter jets joined French Rafale warplanes in the nuclear exercise on Tuesday evening, French Armed Forces Minister Catherine Vautrin said in a statement.
“Having independent nuclear forces does not preclude coordination,” Vautrin said, adding that nuclear cooperation between France and the United Kingdom “continues to deepen.”
She said the exercise demonstrated the two countries’ “coordination and commitment” to supporting European security and maintaining credible deterrence.
France and Britain maintain independent nuclear forces, but the joint exercise signals closer coordination between the two countries on nuclear deterrence as European governments focus on regional security and defense cooperation.
