Europe is "the continent that can be reached tomorrow by missiles" from Russia, which "is becoming an uninhibited power again", Macron told reporters on the sidelines of a visit to Strasbourg. "The debate raised by the Germans, especially since they do not have a nuclear deterrent, is legitimate," Macron said, adding that he is "not sure that there is any type of anti-missile shield that fully protects against Russian missiles or that deters them". According to the French President, the solution could be "a package": "having our own long-range [missile] launches to deter", "having shields, domes", as proposed by Germany, "and integrating the issue of [nuclear] deterrence into this reflection". For Macron, it is necessary to carry out a "strategic reflection" and "clarify the concept" before analyzing the armament "capabilities" and, in this aspect, there is "a slight difference" in relation to the German approach. In his long speech on Europe, delivered on Thursday at the Sorbonne University in Paris, the French Head of State announced his intention to start discussions with his European partners to build a "strategic concept" for a "credible European defense", in which he raised the hypothesis that Europe needs a European anti-missile defense shield. "Will that (anti-missile defense shield) be enough to deal with Russian missiles?" said Emmanuel Macron. Russia, he added, is increasingly aggressive and has "ballistic capabilities (...) whose range and technology have changed, nuclear weapons and growing capabilities" so measures must be taken: "it is clear that we have to build this strategic concept of a credible European defense for ourselves". The goal is for Europe, which the French Head of State believes to be "mortal", to be able to defend itself, "with its allies when they are ready to do so, and alone if necessary". France's nuclear deterrence is "an essential element in the defense of the European continent", he added. Germany launched the European anti-missile shield initiative "Euro Sky Shield" in October 2022, which Paris opposed, along with Italy and Poland. So far, Berlin has already gathered around twenty other European countries around this initiative, which will benefit from American, Israeli and German technologies, but will not have any French-made equipment. In his Sorbonne speech, the French President also said that Europeans cannot rely solely on the support of the United States for their defense, because for Washington "this is not the priority". Without going so far as to call for the creation of a European army, he called for a "strategic intimacy" in the military domain between the EU Member States. In addition, Macron explained that it is necessary to "increase defense spending", suggesting a European loan to finance the defense effort, in addition to applying "the European preference in the purchase of military equipment", as well as accelerating the integration of the armies in the face of threats such as Russia, with which there has been a recent increase in tensions due to France's support for Ukraine. France is the only country in the European Union that possesses nuclear weapons. In January, during a visit to Sweden, Emmanuel Macron reaffirmed that his country has "a special responsibility" in this regard, especially since the French "vital interests" that can be defended by this nuclear deterrence "are, in part, essentially European". Read Also: French President says Europe is "mortal" and "can die" (Portuguese version)