On June 21, the French officials confirmed their intent to purchase the US-made loitering munitions to strengthen the at-a-distance weapon system.
The war in Ukraine has called into question the European and international security system, making the idea of military collaborations concrete, particularly between France and the United States. The two countries believe it is crucial to increase cooperation between the allies and implement European defence.
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.
On May 13, Belgium’s and France’s Defence ministers, Ludivine Dedonder and Florence Parly signed contracts for the delivery of Nexter’s Caesar 6×6 NG (CAmion Equipé d’un Système d’ARtillerie de Nouvelle Génération) to the Belgian army.
A contingent of some-2400 European troops are set to leave Mali and continue counter-insurgency operations from Niger, as the former colony’s President Mohamed Bazoum said on February 18th. The Sahel area has been constantly plagued for years by Islamist groups, with hundreds of victims and millions of displaced. In the past decade, France, at the helm of a European coalition, has shown a keen interest in collaborating with former colonies to contrast the threat, but the missions have encountered both logistical problems and local dissatisfaction with foreign presence, with Malian armed forces spokesperson Souleymane Dembele lamenting the inefficacy of European troops and Nigerine anti-foreign leader Maïkol Zodi considering them «as an occupying force».