France to boost military budget to €413 billion over next seven years
Proposed spending for the French military for the next seven years is projected to hit a record high of €413 billion. The Minister of Defence and the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, says the increase is necessary due to a deterioration in the geopolitical context and to technological changes.
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Lecornu outlined the objectives of the proposed French military programming bill (LPM) 2024-2030, estimated to cost €413 billion over the next seven years.
This would bring the defense budget to €69 billion in 2030, up from €44 billion this year and €32 billion in 2017.
Presented on Tuesday to the Council of Ministers, the LPM must be adopted before 14 July.
Justifying annual increases of between 3 to 4 billion euros, Lecornu listed several threats including terrorism, the war in Ukraine, the militarisation of space, and the rise in sophistication of cyberattacks.
It is about "staying in the club of nations capable of protecting themselves", he insisted.
The minister said that French military aid to Ukraine was not included in this sum.
Asked about this, the minister confirmed that France was offering support on two fronts; helping the Ukrainian army "carry out effective counter-offensives", and the "ground-to-air defence, to protect the battlefield and major Ukrainian cities".
Impact of inflation
Lecornu has also requested approval for additional spending of €1.5 billion in 2023, to deal with "operational emergencies", particularly in terms of the fight against drones, one of the weaknesses of the French military system.
It is also to cushion the effects of inflation, estimated at €30 billion euros over seven years.
Despite a marked increase in resources, not all the planned needs will be met Lecornu said.
For example, only half the 300 armoured vehicles known as Jaguars will be delivered by 2030.
Similarly, the deliveries of 42 Rafale combat aircraft planned between 2027 and 2030 have been pushed back until 2032. In 2030, the Air Force will have 137 Rafale against an initial target of 185.
The navy will have to get by with just three of the five defense and intervention frigates promised by 2030.
On the other hand, programs linked to nuclear deterrence, and the timetable for the next generation aircraft carrier, which will join the Charles-De-Gaulle by 2038, are maintained.
The annual provision to finance the external operations is set at €800 million.
Conflict in space
Paris will finance studies for the next generation of Celeste intelligence satellites and the successor to the Yoda patrol program, intended to keep spacecraft at a distance from French satellites.
The third Syracuse IV communication satellite, on the other hand, has been abandoned in favour of a constellation whose contours have yet to be defined.
The LPM also provides funding for the Future Air Combat System demonstrator and studies on the future Franco-German battle tank.
Meanwhile, the age limit for reservist call-up to the armed forces will be raised to 70 years, Lecornu told RTL radio on Tuesday.
The age limit is currently between 62 and 65.
Anxious to strengthen the "moral force" of the nation, President Emmanuel Macron aims to double the current number of 40,000 reservists.
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