On 18 May 2022, the European Union (EU) Commission and the High Representative adopted a joint Communication on EU defence gaps and proposed several measures to strengthen EU defence industrial and technological sectors.
Amid the COVID-19 sanitary crisis and the current tense geopolitical situation in Europe due to the war in Ukraine, France is seeking to achieve industrial and technological sovereignty. As references to « sovereignty » grow on the national stage, the scope of the use of this term has been extended to different areas. Talks on that topic can go from defence and security matters to water, health, energy, transport , space or even communications. We will be addressing more specifically within the frameworks of this Info Flash one aspect of this issue, which is related to French sovereignty in the fields of technology and industry.
In the defence industries, as elsewhere, the art of strategy requires a good understanding of possible futures on which to base current choices. Change, instability and uncertainty are the lot of any decision-maker today and will be even more so tomorrow. Digital technology is more important than ever for defence, giving leaders the effective and efficient force to make informed decisions from a common, accurate and timely picture of the operational situation and occupy a strategic position on the battlefield.
EU countries are bundling their defence forces in a new strategy. Negotiations for these plans began as early as 2020, and they have been tightened up considerably in recent months. This is mainly due to the war in Ukraine. The Strategic Compass now contains ‘tougher language’ against Russia (Barigazzi, Gijs & Lau, 2022). The 47-page final result is inevitably heavily influenced by the recent Russian military invasion of Ukraine and its profound impact on the European security architecture.
On 14 March 2022 Cold Response 2022 (CR 22) began, one of the largest North Atlantic Organization Treaty (NATO) exercises in the Arctic since the 1980s. The exercise, led by Norway, involved 30.000 troops, 220 aircrafts and 50 ships from 27 countries and ended on 1 of April. The 2022 edition was held after two years of suspension (2020-2021) because of the pandemic.
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