With a bright red eye, French President Emmanuel Macron appeared during his New Year address to the French armed forces, but still maintained his sense of humor.
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Emmanuel Macron: “Say it’s the Eye of the Tiger,” he joked
“I apologize for the unsightly appearance of my eye,” Emmanuel Macron initially said in his address to France’s armed forces. “Of course, it’s completely harmless,” he clarified. “Just see it as an unintentional reference to ‘Eye of the Tiger.’ For those who understand the reference, it’s a sign of determination,” he said jokingly, making a reference to the song from the 1982 movie Rocky III starring Sylvester Stallone.
Macron on his red eye:
Please excuse the rather unesthetic state of my eye. It is completely harmless.
See it simply as an unintentional reference to the ‘eye of the tiger’ at the start of this year.
For those who get the reference, it is a sign of determination. pic.twitter.com/1g1cdh98YI
— Clash Report (@clashreport) January 15, 2026
Macron: Need to strengthen Europe’s defense capability against colonialism
Macron focused his annual address to French armed forces on the need to strengthen France’s defensive capability, and Europe’s overall, during a period when “some are moving toward a new colonialism.” Speaking from the French air base in Istres, the French president said 2026 is a year of challenges and credibility for France, whose defense capability will be strengthened because, as he said, “to be free, we must be strong.” Specifically, he announced an additional increase in defense spending of 36 billion euros, so that “we can respond to a major challenge over the next three or four years.” He emphasized the need to develop the space dimension of French defense strategy and strengthen European autonomy.
“Russia is capable of threatening us with long-range missiles, as demonstrated by the launch of the Oreshnik missile,” the French president also said, emphasizing that priorities are increasing weapons stockpiles and preparing for potential actions. “History forgives neither unpreparedness nor weakness,” President Macron continued, stressing that “our armed forces are the life insurance of the nation.” According to the French president, in 2025 European defense became reality to the extent that European countries and their allies have essentially taken over support for Ukraine’s resistance against Russia.
The French president notably mentioned that the largest volume of intelligence currently received by the Ukrainian army comes mainly from French sources, while last year it came primarily from American sources. Referring specifically to Greenland, President Macron, after announcing the strengthening of French military presence there with land, air and sea forces in the coming days, said that France and Europe must be present wherever the sovereignty of an EU member state is threatened, noting that Greenland is European territory belonging to Denmark, a NATO member state. The French president also noted that Europe sees decades-old certainties being questioned and faces competitors it couldn’t previously imagine. “We are in a world where destabilizing forces have awakened,” Emmanuel Macron emphasized.
Regarding European defense industry, the French president noted the need to strengthen European preference, while regarding French defense industry he pointed out that “we are not a war economy and therefore defense systems production is insufficient.” “We must increase our defense industry because otherwise today’s clients will be tomorrow’s competitors,” the French president also noted. Finally, referring to developments in Iran, the French president spoke of an evolving revolution and unacceptable attacks by the regime against Iranian citizens. The French president called for an end to these attacks, noting that France will contribute to de-escalating tensions and achieving stability and security in the region.
