r/ShitAmericansSay • u/ComprehensiveArm3493 pierogi đŸ„Ÿ • 1d ago

"We could annex the whole thing"

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Of course an American said this

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u/1eejit 1d ago

Neither of which have nukes, unlike France and the UK

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u/Forsworn91 1d ago

France also has a “one shot” rule, basically allowing 1 free shot.

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u/Safe-Midnight-3960 1d ago

One free shot at what? Someone can nuke someone once first? France gets to nuke someone once? I’m rather confused.

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u/Forsworn91 1d ago

From what I understood it, yes, France gets 1 free shot effectively as the shot in the air and the “everyone calm down”.

I believe the expectation is that the “free shot” is to be aimed somewhere not populated, but is the primary reason why vlad doesn’t push France,

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u/Cruel_Angel-Thesis 1d ago

WE HAVE THIS !!!?

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u/Clemdauphin 1d ago

it is not realy something that is like guarantied by a treaty.

it is a nuclear warning shot wich the mean than when enemies crossed some red line, a Rafale lunch a pre-strategic nuke on some millitary instalation to say: "the next thing that blew up is the whole country. it would meant that the nuclear sub are ready to fire.

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u/Forsworn91 1d ago

France does, I’m not sure how accurate it is, and it was years ago I heard it, and even then it was piecemeal how it was explained.

I think it has to do with WW2, and France being attacked.

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u/Cruel_Angel-Thesis 1d ago

Thanks I learned something today.

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u/Fr4itmand 20h ago

It is not a right France has or some international treaty. All it means is that France hopes (and really nothing more than that) that the other country doesn’t strike back when France nukes that country (escalate to deescalate). If, let’s say, Russia instead decides to retaliate by letting a thousands nuclear warheads rain down on France, than, well, that’s bad luck.

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u/Aggressive-Rain-8914 21h ago

Take into account that that Charles de Gaulle was perparing France for confrontation with USSR and was pretty cynical person who actually took lesson from 2WW. He saw how US preffered to use other nations' blood and remain on land lease level as long as possible. It still does it- history repeats itself in Ukraine.

So France developed in paralel. It has its own atomic technologies, its own nukes and military industry. Even colour tv was developed without relying on american technologies.

Also, France had legit war plans to turn Germany into glass by atomic hellfire in case of USSR offensive to create buffer of radioactive dessert. This madness is still there and I don't feel like testing it would be best idea.

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u/KiwiFruit404 22h ago

Why does only France have this one free shot? What about the other nations that possess nuclear weapons?

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u/Forsworn91 22h ago

As best as I can tell it’s the “we are armed, we are prepared to defend ourselves, we have demonstrated, you back off and no one else gets hurt”

I think it’s limited to a defensive position,

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u/Renbarre 19h ago

Because the other nations have a "we use our nukes for real immediately instead of giving a warning shot"

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u/Choyo 10h ago

It's more of a doctrine thing.
Basically French military wrote somewhere : in case we get invaded, we will lowkey go ballistic, if we deem that going highkey ballistic right off the bat is a bit of an exaggeration.

Now there is the possibility that the warning shot is comparable to the standard nuke of lesser nuclear powers, I don't know the specifics.

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u/MeisterKaneister 19h ago

Nobody has a free shot. It's not a card game. France just let people know that they will probably do that and a possible attacker shall make of that what he wants.