France has racked up a mountain of national debt to reach a debt-to-GDP ratio of 113 per cent last year, behind only Greece and Italy. The budget deficit was also among the highest at 5.8 per cent of GDP at the end of 2024, far higher than the EU limit of 3 per cent.
This is on topic:
Russian defense spending eclipsed all other European countries combined in 2024 and is projected to increase further in 2025, according to a report published by UK’s International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in February 2025.
The IISS found that Moscow’s military expenditure spiked by over 40 percent to almost $146 billion [in 2024], equivalent to 6.7 percent GDP, and is on track to hit 7.5 percent GDP in 2025. When adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP), Russia spent nearly $462 billion in 2024, effectively leapfrogging Europe’s collective spending. PPP is a tool used to remove price level differences between currencies in order to better demonstrate the purchasing strength of one over another.
IISS’ estimates are in line with Russia’s official budget numbers for 2024. According to the Kremlin’s plans released back in last fall, defence spending will account for 32% of the total 2025 budget expenditure.
So it seems France and the others will have to find a way to manage this.