Meeting the Moment: French Investments in Allied Security and Domestic Capacities Shine on Recent Joint Committee Visit to Paris and Belfort

France is investing for a future as a leader among NATO’s European member states. French forces lead NATO’s multinational battlegroup in Romania, and French planes, ships and forces are working alongside other Allied forces from the Baltic to the Black Sea to bolster the Alliance’s Eastern Flank. France is also working directly and with Allies to support Ukraine’s valiant self-defence efforts – from donating substantial advanced weaponry systems to hosting Ukrainian recruits in France for training. France’s robust and industry-leading defence industrial players are also responding to NATO’s calls for more and better defence industrial output – their tasking today is significant, as demand surges to restock Allies’ depleted coffers, continue to supply Ukraine, and outfit Allies’ future armed forces to be capable of dominating all warfare domains in tomorrow’s fight.

France’s multi-axis response to NATO’s calls to do more to meet the complex challenges of today’s security environment served as a framework for a dynamic and informative joint committee visit of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly to Paris and Belfort from 15 18 October. In Paris, the delegation from the Assembly’s sub-committees on Future Security and Defence Capabilities (DSCFC) and Technology Trends and Security (STCTTS) met with leading French defence policymakers and defence industrial players. While in Belfort, French military leaders overseeing France’s military adaptation and support for Ukraine showcased some of the personnel and defence solutions leading the implementation of France’s defence policies today at the first Artillery Regiment.

Cédric Perrin (France), Chairman of the DSCFC and Chair of the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Armed Forces Committee in the French Senate, hosted and led the delegation alongside Agnes Vadai (Hungary), Chairwoman of the Science and Technology Committee (STC). The delegation consisted of 17 MPs from 8 Allied countries.

Investing in Strong, Resilient Defence Institutions

A core message resonating throughout the week was straightforward; in an era of competing policy priorities, France needs to commit to substantial new defence investments to strengthen French forces, play a leading role in NATO’s adaptation, and to support French defence industry as a European and global leader. As DSCFC Chairman Perrin stated at the beginning of the visit: “We have seen the return of major war in Europe, and this means the definitive end of the peace dividend. France understands the need to respond to the defence imperatives of today – more investments in stronger, more resilient forces, support for Ukraine’s just self-defence in the face of renewed aggression in Europe, and allocating the resources necessary to invest in our industrial capacity to restock our own arsenals, lend much-needed support to Ukraine, and see to it our defence industry has the means to expand production for today and innovate for tomorrow.”

To support these objectives, French lawmakers passed a forward-looking defence budget in mid-2023, the loi de programmation militaire for 2024-2030. Now in effect, the defence legislation lays out ambitious goals for the transformation of the French armed forces; to be all-domain capable, resilient, independent, and more interoperable with NATO Allies going forward. Underwriting the 2024-2030 military programme is a significant amount of new funding – lawmakers intend to invest EUR 413.3bn over the next 7 years; a 40% increase over the previous 2019-2025 military programming legislation. The new levels of defence investment will bring France up to top tier of defence investors in the Alliance in terms of percent of gross domestic product (GDP) committed, as well as the portion of the budget dedicated to new equipment purchases and innovation.

French officials noted that the success of the new military adaptation efforts will require cross service modernisation as well as policy transformation to not only defend French sovereignty and strategic autonomy, but also to drive France forward as a leader among NATO Allies. Key to achieving France’s military transformation, officials stressed, is not just acquiring greater quantities of higher quality equipment, but also having the personnel capable of using it effectively in defence of France and the NATO Alliance.

The critical issues of achieving greater and better defence industrial production, as well as successful personnel recruitment, were central to the message delivered by Sébastien Lecornu, Minister of the Armed Forces, during briefings at the French Senate. Mr. Lecornu noted that ramping up defence industrial production while ensuring cross Alliance interoperability is a key challenge for France and for all Allies. While it is a significant challenge, he stressed, it is one that must be solved to maintain NATO’s leading edge in today’s challenging and rapidly evolving international security environment.

Other French officials and defence industrial leaders stressed the need for a political and societal mindset shift. They stressed that France, as well as all Allies, needs to get government, industry, and the society on a war-level footing to overmatch the capabilities of the adversaries seeking to undermine NATO’s strength and cohesion. As many officials noted, the fundamentals of European security changed the morning Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. France, and NATO Allies, must combine all elements of national power to meet the moment and defend the values underpinning the transatlantic bond, and driving NATO’s enduring relevance as the actor with the readiness and resolve to defend Alliance territory and populations. 

French Forces in NATO Today

French forces are deployed across almost all NATO operations and initiatives, and they represent some of the most capable in any domain. Briefers told the delegation that given the imperatives of the current European security environment, France sees its principal contributions to NATO focused on two principal axes: deterrence and defence reinforcement along the Eastern Flank and support for Ukraine’s legitimate self-defence against Russia’s war of aggression. 
As Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine jolted conceptions of the European security order, France has stepped forward to play a major role in the many initiatives of NATO’s enhanced forward presence along the Eastern Flank to reinforce the Alliance’s deterrence and defence posture. France took on the role of framework nation for the multinational battlegroup established in Romania after an extraordinary NATO Summit in Brussels on 24 March 2022. French troops also reinforce the multinational battlegroup in Estonia. France’s air force is an integral part of the NATO air policing effort above the Black Sea, and French naval ships participate in NATO’s maritime operations securing the Alliance’s strategic seas (e.g., Akila Mission). French forces are also actively participating in the increased tempo of exercising and training with Allies in line with the fulfilment of NATO’s new regional defence plans announced at the 2023 Vilnius Summit.

Multi-Pronged Support for Ukraine’s Self-Defence Against Russian Aggression

In addition to increased NATO deployments and exercising, France is taking a leading role in supporting Ukraine’s legitimate self-defence against Russia’s full-scale invasion of its sovereign territory. At the bilateral level, France’s total aid to Ukraine, if counting its portion of EU aid, equals over EUR 13bn, making it fourth among all donors behind the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. 

France’s billions in direct military assistance to Ukraine runs a wide range, briefers noted, but its most significant impact has been via the provision of advanced artillery systems, air defence systems, and long-range precision strike missiles – France’s César howitzers, and SAMP/T air defence systems, and SCALP precision-guided missiles have had a significant impact on the battlefield in Ukraine. France is also training thousands of new Ukrainian recruits for the front lines via sizeable initiatives in both France and Poland. French military aid to Ukraine aims to do what is needed most, officials told the delegation; help Ukrainian forces defend the front lines and the nation’s skies, as well as train forces to sustain the fight and, eventually, push Russian forces out of Ukraine.

France is working with NATO Allies to coordinate the delivery of military assistance where it is needed most in Ukraine via initiatives such as the artillery and air defence coalitions formed in the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG), which coordinates Allied and partner military assistance to Ukraine. France is also working closely with Allies to stand up NATO’s new command, the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), which will plan, coordinate, and arrange the delivery of security assistance to Ukraine for today and tomorrow’s fight. The NSATU will staff approximately 700 NATO and select partner personnel at its headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany and operate key logistical hubs in NATO’s Eastern Flank.  
French Defence Industry: A European and Global Power Ramping Up for the Future

France’s defence industrial players are among the most advanced and productive today in global markets. France surpassed Russia to become the world’s second largest major arms exporter in 2023, seeing a 47 percent increase in global sales from 2019-2023 over 2014-2018. As executives representing French defence industry during briefings at the French Senate noted, France’s defence industry sees the rapid increase in production of leading-edge platforms at scale as a national and European imperative. The ability to do so will create a much-needed ‘European pillar’ in NATO capable of responding to the needs of the moment and to ensure balance in the Euro-Atlantic marketplace. 

To understand how France’s leading defence industrial producers are executing this mission, the delegation visited KNDS and MBDA, two major arms producers leading the way in land force systems design and advanced missiles for air defence and precision strike capabilities respectively. Both companies are multi-national conglomerates combining the engineering knowhow and production scale of former solely national arms producers – a Franco-German fusion in the case of KNDS and larger, European integrated defence company in the case of MBDA, which fused French, British, German, Italian, and Spanish entities. 

As briefers at KNDS noted, they have been able to get to war economy production levels over the last two years as a result of taking investment risks, streamlining production lines, recruitment surges, and supply-chain expansion. The results, briefers noted, has been impressive – KNDS has more than double its production of much-needed artillery shells and up-scaled production of its advanced artillery firing system, the César 6x6 cannon, from 2 to 6 per month. This effort has allowed for France to both restock its own supplies, as well as surge its equipment donations to Ukraine. 
At MDBA, the delegation learned of the wide range of industry-leading missile systems that have made the company the leading provider in the European market, and capture a substantial, and growing, share of the global market. Briefers at MBDA noted how the company is capable of responding to the three-fold imperatives of the moment – maintaining support for supplies needed in Ukraine, ramping up broader industrial production, and innovation initiatives. To get there, the ability to scale production, combine talents and ensure secure supply chains across Europe.

Putting it All into Action: A Visit to the 1st Artillery Brigade

As its name implies, the 1st Artillery brigade is France’s oldest continuous brigade, with its roots back to the late 17th century. Today, the 1st Artillery Regiment has the distinction of being the most deployed French regiment to NATO’s post-2022 Eastern Flank reinforcement and reassurance initiatives. Through its NATO deployments and exercising, briefers noted, the regiment has developed a solid inter-Allied culture of training and action, working with Belgian, Dutch, Greek, Polish, and Romanian forces on initiatives from the Baltic down to the Black Sea.

The regiment operates the French Army’s latest and most capable systems, including long-range precision strike systems, advanced radars and sensors, and other land force systems. Young professionals in the armed forces performed dynamic demonstrations of these capabilities for the delegation during its visit. As a part of its current efforts, the regiment is also an integral part of French efforts to support the artillery support coalition for Ukraine. Briefers noted the regiment also deploys on missions well outside of NATO’s remit as well across Africa and the Middle East to as far as France’s overseas territories in the Pacific. 

The visit to Belfort concluded with a visit to the impressive fort overlooking the geographic gap at the convergence of modern France, Germany and Switzerland. The fort was made famous for its successful defence against Prussian forces during the 1870 Franco-Prussian War. The Lion of Belfort, France’s largest statue today, is carved into the side of the cliffs holding up the fort, a symbol of France’s enduring commitment to its self-reliance and defence of the values it holds dear – fitting the monument stands today at the crossroads of Franco-German cooperative initiatives and is home to France’s most active regiment in French cooperation in NATO, the values of France today are those shared across Europe and all of NATO, individual liberty, human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

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Photos of the visit, courtesy of the Sénat and 1er régiment d'artillerie