French Defence General News

I know that this article is a bit old,but what do you think?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/2084832/French-army-falling-apart-documents-show.html

Explains why France has doubled their procurement budget to $20 billion a year. Cold War relics breakdown and now they are replacing them.

French delete evidence US carrier was 'sunk' by an old sub in drill



http://rt.com/usa/238257-french-submarine-us-carrier/

Believing you are safe is more important than actually being safe... in America... explains the ABM systems in Europe too BTW.

France Awards Contract for Sigint Satellites

PARIS — The Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) has appointed Airbus Defence and Space and Thales as joint prime contractors, and awarded the two companies the first phase of production, for the launch of three CERES signals intelligence satellites, the procurement office said.

The budget for production and launch is €450 million, the DGA said in a March 12 statement. The satellites will enter service by 2020, the office said.

"Three closely positioned satellites will detect and locate radio communications and radars," Thales said in a statement. The electronics company will supply the mission payload and the ground segment.

Airbus DS will supply the three satellites, the company said. Thales Alenia Space will supply the space platform as subcontractor.

"This satellite system will give France a capability that few countries possess," Airbus DS said.

France selects H160 for light helicopter replacement programme

France has selected the Airbus Helicopters H160 as the basis for its tri-service light rotorcraft replacement programme, a major coup for the developmental medium twin.

Speaking during a visit to the manufacturer’s Marignane facility in the south of the country, French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that deliveries under the hélicoptère interarmées léger (HIL) effort would start in around 2024.

Le Drian says that between 160 and 190 aircraft would be required under HIL, which seeks to replace a number of ageing types across all three French services.

These include the navy’s Aérospatiale Alouette IIIs, multirole AS365 Dauphin and AS565 Panthers, the air force’s AS555 Fennec light attack rotorcraft and SA330 Pumas; and the Puma transports and SA341/342 Gazelles used in the reconnaissance and light attack role by the army, plus its Fennec trainers – a total of around 420 aircraft, according to Flight Fleets Analyzer.

Development work on the H160 has focused on civil missions, with Airbus Helicopters indicating that it would only look at a military variant at some undefined point in the future.

The manufacturer will shortly start discussing the H160's detailed performance figures with customers, including the crucial maximum take-off weight. Previously it has only given the specification as 5.5t- to 6t. Service entry is scheduled for 2019.

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/france-selects-h160-for-light-helicopter-replacement-434790/

A Czech automatic rifle will be put into service with the French rapid reaction group

According to the publication "Un nouveau fusil d'assaut tchèque pour le GIGN?" Resource "opex360.com", the British site Shephard Media reported that the Group of Special Response to the French gendarmerie (GIGN) plans to purchase 68 units of the automatic rifle CZ 806 Bren 2 manufactured by Ceska Zbrojovka company in the version for the Soviet interim cartridge 7.62x39 mm [according to the manufacturer, the rifle for this cartridge is designated CZ 807 - bmpd]. The choice of this weapon was made known at the last SOFINS salon, dedicated to special forces and held in March 2017.



http://bmpd.livejournal.com/2543443.html

Interesting that countries are practicing for a french fragmentation

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/switzerland/10344029/Swiss-war-game-envisages-invasion-by-bankrupt-French.html

French military chief resigns after Macron spat over budget cuts

France’s most senior military chief has resigned after a blistering spat with Emmanuel Macron, saying that proposed army budgets cuts meant he was no long able to “guarantee” the protection of France.

In the first sign of the heavy opposition Mr Macron is likely to face as he seeks to cut €60bn of spending over the coming five years, General Pierre de Villiers suggested that €850m in planned military cuts this year was endangering the country.

“In the current circumstances, I see myself as no longer able to guarantee the robust defence force I believe is necessary to guarantee the protection of France and the French people, today and tomorrow, and to sustain the aims of our country,” he said in a statement.

Following the announcement of the government’s defence cutbacks, Gen de Villiers told a French parliamentary committee earlier this month: “I may be stupid, but I know when I’m being had”.

Responding to the general’s remarks, Mr Macron told a French newspaper at the weekend:

If something opposes the military chief of staff and the president, the military chief of staff goes.

Mr Macron is facing a near €9bn hole in the country’s public finances over the next two years, forcing his centrist government to embark on deep spending cuts to meet an EU deficit target of 3 per cent of GDP this year.

France’s budget deficit ended 2016 at a bigger than expected 3.4 per cent and will fall to just 3.2 per cent without an additional €4bn austerity effort this year, France’s state auditor has warned.

After the war of words with the general, Mr Macron announced a €1.5bn rise in military spending in 2018 in an apparent attempt to ease tensions with the military.

On Wednesday, Gen de Villiers said Mr Macron had accepted his resignation.

https://www.ft.com/content/c4cd09a2-8158-37cc-b05f-7c4486dcc1ae?mhq5j=e2

Serge Dassault, the billionaire chairman of French conglomerate Dassault Groupe, died in his office in Paris on May 28, according to media

https://www.forbes.com/consent/?toURL=https://www.forbes.com/sites/angelauyeung/2018/05/29/billionaire-french-businessman-serge-dassault-dies-at-93/

Macron Declares French Space Command is in the Works

22:19 13.07.2019

The new space initiative is expected to help France better ensure the safety of its satellites.

Addressing troops ahead of the upcoming Bastille Day military parade, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that he has approved the creation of the country’s own space command to bolster France’s defence capabilities.

As Macron explained, this move will allow the country to better protect its satellites, noting that the exact investment is yet to be determined.

"To give substance to this doctrine and ensure the development and reinforcement of our space capabilities, a space command will be created next September in the air force", the president declared.

In November, Macron also suggested that the European Union should get a "real European army" which would be independent from the United States and capable of defending Europe.

Previously, French Defence Minister Florence Parly said that Paris intends to spend 3.6 billion euros on the renewal of its military satellites. These funds are also expected to go towards the launch of three CERES electromagnetic-monitoring satellites, and the modernisation of a spatial radar surveillance system called GRAVES.

Earlier this year, Jean-Yves Le Gall, president of the French government space agency CNES (National Centre for Space Studies) revealed that the development of space industry has become France's priority, and that the organisation is waiting for French President Emmanuel Macron to make a strategic decision on forming the country's "space force".

Did you see yesterday? It was a big spectacle in Paris at Bastille Day



First time ever also a german unit was part of the parade and German chancellor Merkel also attended the event.

That Macron invited Merkel but not trump is a message. France plans a military cooperation with Germany and otehr european powers. And also wants push back USA more and more.

The French Army at the limit of its capabilities - Chief of General Staff

According to the publication " La Tribune The " in the material "" Je suis au The capacités a bout of de mes "(Général Lecointre, chef d'état-major des armées) ", Chief of the General Staff of armed forces of France, General Francois Lekuantr (François Lecointre) considers the current model French army does not meet the needs. This primarily concerns frigates of the first rank, in which the fleet has reached the limit of its capabilities.

In his opinion, the French armament program for the period 2019-2025 allows patching holes and restrictions inherited from the previous program, modernizing the army and answering the challenges of the Ambition 2030 program. He also noted that the 2020 budget for the modernization of the armed forces provided an additional 1.7 billion euros, which brings the volume of defense spending to 37.5 billion euros, and this will amount to 1.86% of next year's GDP.


At the same time, he drew attention to two programs that are too actively implemented. This is a program for the construction of frigates and the purchase of armored vehicles Scorpion. Regarding frigates, he stated the following: “Today I need to give a guarantee to the president of the country regarding his permanent presence in the Persian Gulf. Added to this is the observation of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, patrolling in the Syrian region, as well as the protection of our bastion in the Gaskon Bay and the monitoring of the departure of Russian submarines from their bases in the North Atlantic. I am at the limit of my possibilities. ” And the chief of staff of the fleet, Admiral Christoph Pratsuk, said that in the Strait of Hormuz, ideally, you should have not one, but two frigates, which will allow you to be present on an ongoing basis. In 2008, the approved requirement for first rank frigates was 24 units (17 FREMM,Lafayette ). In 2015, a new state was approved by 2030 - 15 units. Too little.

Regarding armored vehicles, it is noted that in 2008, when the situation was not as complicated as it is now, the French army had 452 medium-class armored vehicles, and today, by 2030, 300 Jaguar are planned to be purchased. And although they are more sophisticated than their predecessors, the number of theaters of operations remains intact.

The same is true for the Air Force. In 2007, they included 420 combat aircraft, and by 2030 it is planned to maintain 185 multipurpose aircraft.

The Lecuantre also noted that currently 30,000 troops are defending France, of which 8,000 are in operations abroad. And 20,000 are serving in France. In his opinion, such a voltage level that has been maintained for several years has no precedent, and should not be reduced in subsequent years. But the sources of crises are very numerous, and the chief of the General Staff expressed concern that they might increase.


Note bmpd.In our estimation, France can really afford to keep no more than 5,000 troops abroad. And this tension is maintained due to the fact that troops are being transferred from Mali to Afghanistan. The military personnel themselves are sometimes forced to buy uniforms and equipment, as well as body armor. It comes to the fact that the military personnel of one unit may be wearing various non-standard shoes.

https://bmpd.livejournal.com/3839260.html

Will Macron decide to war with Turkey
https://regnum.ru/news/polit/2994877.html

If he does, Gaddafi's brutal death will be avenged, even if Turkey loses!

Udate:
https://www.juancole.com/2020/09/frances-declares-independence.html

Published a book by the former head of French military intelligence, General Gomard, criticizing colleagues

On September 24, the French publishing house Tallandier published Christophe Gomart's book Soldat de l'ombre . In 2017, the general left the post of commander of the DRM (Directorate of Military Intelligence), an analogue of the Russian GRU, to go into civilian life and become the director of security and crisis management of the Unibail-Rodamco (Real Estate) group. Summing up the results of his military career, the general devoted 380 pages of the book not only to his 30-year service in the special forces, but also to throwing heavy stones into the gardens of his colleagues.

In an instant, the leading French newspapers and magazines were full of reviews of the book, and the Le Figaro magazine could not pass by such an event, which published, among other things, several excerpts from the text of an army general who dared to break the secrecy prescribed by the charter for a man in uniform ".

What made the former military leader “wash dirty linen in public”?

Such "indiscretion" is viewed by some critics close to the DGSE (French Foreign Intelligence Service) as a form of revenge from someone who did not get into the highest positions in President Macron's entourage, or the heads of the French General Staff, although this, in his opinion, was him predetermined.

Himself a retired general answers in the pages of Le Figaro: «I've been wanting to talk about military special forces, whose services are too little known", - the general led him in 2011 - 2013 years.

“Also, we are far from the days when Mac-Mahon said, 'when I see an officer's name on the cover of a book, I cross him off the tableau d'avancement.'

The authors of the reviews, already interviewed in Le Figaro, do not agree with the general - in modern France, the army leadership also does not favor the epistolary creativity of subordinates, and there are many examples of this. In turn, General Henri Bentegeat, the former chief of staff of France, sees in the books "a good way to fit the army into society, of course, without touching on upcoming operations."

And what attracts the attention of professionals to the publication?

In his book, General Gomar boldly reveals the realities of the elite military units involved in special operations under the auspices of France in Afghanistan, Libya and Mali. At the same time, he stubbornly disputes the legitimacy of the DGSE's participation in such military special operations.

French special operations are, on the one hand, 4000 military COS (MTR), subordinate to CEMA (chief of staff of France) and, on the other hand, SA (special forces) 1000 military personnel of the ground forces subordinate to the DGSE.

Interactions between the COS and SA cousins ​​have never been easy. The 7,000-member DGSE structure has a leadership position in the Deep State, and General Gomar is a pure military product dreaming of the days when the DGSE was led by the military. But on the eve of the 1988 elections, President François Mitterrand took the leadership of the DGSE away from the army, in punishment for criticism of its policies openly communicated from the general's camp.

Problem form

“The complete delimitation of the COS and the DGSE units conducting special operations does not make any sense, in fact it is the presence or absence of military uniforms during the operation,” the general says. In his opinion, the main argument in favor of separation is the complete secrecy of SA DGSE's special operations, opposed to the more “visible” actions of the COS, theoretically always recognized by France as a kind of gifts for diplomats. The model dear to General Gomar's heart is the British SAS unit, completely overshadowed by the military.

The solution to the problem for General Gomaru: leave SA DGSE its special forces training center in Cercotte, and transfer 1000 elite fighters (pilots, paratroopers and combat swimmers) under the auspices of COS.

“COS is a young elite unit created in 1992, during the first war in Iraq, but since then, military special forces have matured, taking part in operations in Afghanistan and Libya,” said General Henri Banteja. “It is clear that the interaction of the two structures is problematic, but there is no optimal solution,” adds Banteja.

General Gomar insists: "The military's special forces methods avoid unnecessary risks."

Le Figaro cites several excerpts from the book on the SA DGSE's failures, often leading to international scandals:

Libya

“In Libya, SA DGSE agents, as always, did their job in civilian clothes. This time, at the urgent request of local authorities, who did not want to advertise the presence of foreign troops, the COS fighters left their uniforms on a hanger. Thus, any foreign military uniform was banned. The COS special forces acquired the appearance of a tourist traveling in the desert in a sand-colored suit with pants with large pockets - the outfit is quite practical and, of course, comfortable shoes.

So, the question of our wearing military uniforms is no longer on the agenda. The appearance of the fighters must meet the requirements of a specific situation, otherwise it is impossible to comply with the conditions of the operation. It is important to consider whether it is possible or not, if discovered, to "acknowledge" the operation. If it can be "recognized" if discovered, then it is carried out imperceptibly, and if it cannot, even if it fails, then it is secret. But such an alignment is impossible these days, when everything becomes apparent too quickly, in particular, thanks to social networks that instantly distribute photos taken with an ordinary smartphone - so the line between an invisible and a covert operation is blurred. The French state will not notify the whole world about the sending of COS or SA DGSE fighters, but anyway, someday the history of SA DGSE operations in Libya will be described from start to finish.

The death of 3 SA DGSE fighters made them talk about the effectiveness of their work

Usually the hidden is revealed when a tragedy occurs - this happened on July 17, 2016, when an MI-35 helicopter took off from Benin airport, conducted an offensive operation and was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile. All the fighters on board were killed, and their bodies were put on public display, the Libyan rebels immediately determined that the dead belonged to the French special forces, and it was no coincidence that they were dressed in the uniform of COS fighters.

This is not the only case where SA DGSE agents, without any permission, have used "visible affiliation" with COS fighters as cover. SA DGSE agents brazenly use COS numbers for their aircraft, creating a "mix of genres", which is not good for everyone, because opacity is toxic - while foreign partners are completely at a loss, not understanding who is who.

As a rule, COS fighters leaving on a mission are unaware of the presence of SA DGSE agents on the spot. As for the latter, they insist on informing them about the movements of the COS fighters on the spot. Moreover, in the first operation near Manbij in Syria, SA DGSE included its officer in the COS group, the opposite has never happened.

The tragic episode of the death of three French soldiers from SA DGSE in Libya - an undesirable incident - France had to admit its secret location in the country, and the government of national unity, led by Fayez el-Sarrai, expressed dissatisfaction with the violation of its borders.

Denis Allex case

/ On January 11, 2013, an attempt was made to free DGSE agent Denis Allex, the operation failed, the hostage was killed ... /

“When I took over command of COS in 2011, I became involved in the Denis Allex Case, a DGSE agent kidnapped in Mogadishu (Somalia) in 2009 ... At this stage, the DGSE was looking for a place to contain him, and we had no doubt that they are already considering possible options for his release. Thinking logically: the DGSE could use its specifics - to act in civilian clothes, to introduce its agents and pass them off as someone they are not ... However, it must be admitted that the presence of white skin in a country like Somalia complicates the process ...

An assault operation is a military operation, for this there are COS fighters, and a secret operation is a completely different matter - 3-4 dexterous and resourceful guys at most. Discussing this issue with Colonel Raphael, Chief of SA DGSE, I insisted on a complex military operation to free the hostage, at least with the support of my unit. Therefore, we were ready to provide them with technology, people and skills, but the director of the DGSE had a different opinion and my arguments did not convince him. "SA DGSE must storm and free the hostage in its own way because Denis Allex left their ranks ..."

Co-workers told me: "This is their man, Christoph, and they want to go there themselves, you can understand them" ...

I explained my disagreement to them: “We do not play in an American action movie where a guy returns to military service because he wants to save his friend. In this case, we must be absolutely objective, and we invade the field of feelings instead of remaining neutral, cold and objective "...

I know that it is not good to reopen a wound, they may also tell me that it is not good to wash “dirty laundry in public”, and I am far from criticizing where others made a decision, no one doubts - the guys from SA DGSE fought like lions, showing an example of courage some of them paid for it with their lives ...

As a French officer, not devoid of combat experience, I will say that in this case we were present at the mixing of genres - everyone must act according to their capabilities and competencies in their field to achieve a more efficient process.

At the same time, I am not suggesting that the COS fighters would have successfully carried out the operation anyway if it had been entrusted to them, but I am not forbidden to think that we could have done otherwise, bringing more luck to our side ...

After each operation, it is necessary to comprehend the experience gained with a fresh mind, firstly, the route of penetration into the territory between the helicopter landing site and the Denis Allex detention center turned out to be longer and more difficult than previously thought. The reconnaissance was not as complete as we would like - the dark, moonless night, chosen for the action, actually turned out to be illuminated by a considerable number of lights from the camps (rebels), although it was assumed that no one would meet along the way.

In fact, it was not a "secret operation", but a typical special forces operation, with support from the US Air Force (two aircraft), the French fleet (helicopter carrier Mistral) and COS (Caracal and Tigre helicopters). I am extremely sorry that no joint debriefing of COS and SA DGSE took place, although this would allow each other to enrich in the area of ​​common and different competencies.

As I was given to understand, SA DGSE made its own conclusions that operations of this type were not for its scope.

I believe that we need to develop the capabilities of "secret actions", to prepare individuals with exceptional abilities, but unfortunately, the SA DGSE was neither organized, nor equipped, not seasoned enough to independently act in such operations. "

Training incidents

“There is a lot of criticism for the DGSE Special Forces Training Center in Cercotte, where the number of fatalities is on the rise. This situation is unacceptable and raises a lot of questions. It is not normal for casualties to occur during military exercises. The preparation to which we are accustomed takes people beyond their capabilities, tempering them for future real conditions in the special missions assigned to them. Losing an agent during a special operation is hard, despite the acute awareness of the risks incurred, but during the briefing - compliance with security measures is vital - in the truest sense of the word.

Human life is priceless, whether it is a secret service agent or a simple layman.

When incidents happen abroad, and again during the training of agents, they never do without diplomatic consequences, and accordingly suggest the need to reform the unit.

Nicolas Le Nen, Head of SA DGSE 2014-2018 tried to transform his unit, finding no support from above, but relying on Bernard Bajolet, the intelligence coordinator, who insisted on a profound overhaul of the organization and working methods of SA DGSE.
I recall the wording attributed to Jacques Chirac: "The DGSE has a distortion factor too high."

https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4150763.html

https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20210915-us-britain-australia-announce-new-security-pact-to-counter-china

France accused US President Joe Biden on Thursday of stabbing it in the back and acting like his predecessor Donald Trump after Paris was pushed aside from a lucrative defence deal that it had signed with Australia for submarines to strengthen Canberra’s military capabilities in the face of a rising China.

"It's really a stab in the back. We had established a relationship of trust with Australia, this trust has been betrayed," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told France Info radio.

"I'm very angry today, and bitter... this is not something allies do to each other," he said, noting that Australia would now have to explain how it would exit the contract.

Le Drian also said Biden’s conduct was reminiscent of his predecessor Trump, who exasperated Europe with unpredictable decision-making.

"This unilateral, sudden and unforeseeable decision very much recalls what Mr. Trump would do," Le Drian added, describing what has happened as "unacceptable" and "incomprehensible."

France's Naval Group, partly owned by the state, had been chosen to build 12 conventionally powered submarines for Australia, based on France's Barracuda nuclear-powered subs in development.

The contract was worth around 50 billion Australian dollars (€31 billion, $36.5 billion) when announced in 2016.

But Biden announced a new US security alliance with Australia and Britain on Wednesday, that would develop an Australian nuclear-powered submarine fleet.



I think this move is going to backfire, look for France to stray off the NATO/Quad anti-China alliance and to move towards normalizing trade with Russia, France has been the hardest hit in terms of its exports to Russia.

France has been in bad economic shape for a long time now, its defense industry is one of the good sectors, and that deal was the biggest export package France had. This is a major blow to their economy, it will have diplomatic repercussions. France is no longer a top economic power, but it still punches above its weight in terms of diplomacy, potentially so. That potential has been scuttled by subservient globalist presidents ever since Chirac stepped down. But the pathway to becoming relevant again is there for the taking, and this move is going to shake the country to its foundations.

What I really don't understand is why include the UK in this deal... the French were already negotiating these subs... they could have changed them to nuke powered subs which the subs they were selling originally were...

More importantly France has better ties with many countries in the Pacific... the UK probably only has good ties with Australia and New Zealand and we are not interested in nuclear powered submarines, so from that perspective France would offer more to this than the UK would... plus I would think the UK is really going to stretch its current navy if it wants to regularly exercise in the Pacific.

I have mentioned before, this is probably linked to the Trident deal... if Boris spends hundreds of billions on Trident missiles and subs then the US will get the aussies to snub the french (a huge bonus now the UK is out of the EU), and also likely do a lot fo the work in Australia helping them build new nuclear power submarines which will allow them to earn some of those hundreds of billions of pounds they are about to waste on Tridents.

It is also a huge project with Australia and for the UK closer cooperation and ties with the old empire is something they are going to need to compensate for the loss of direct access to the EU market.

I can't say I am upset about France losing thing contract... but what did they say over the Mistrals... business is business... they would have made the third and fourth Mistrals by now and the first two would be operation in the Pacific or Northern Fleet most likely... more money they have thrown away for the Americans...

It will be interesting to see what they do.... will this see them leave HATO and perhaps push them to creating a EU military force and distance themselves more from the US?

It is not just France that is upset, but all of the EU because I think they are expecting an economic boom when the projects to link Asia to the EU are complete and trade is faster and cheaper and safer... but the US stirring trouble could screw that up the same way it ruined EU trade with Russia.

French are very chauvinistic, they don't want to be reminded of their vassal status. They didn't need it in first place, their technological know how is excellent and their nuclear deterrence would repel anyone. I see them moving to the East along with the Germans in the coming decades. Baltic states, Greece and maybe Poland, Ukraine will be crashed in the process.

GarryB wrote:What I really don't understand is why include the UK in this deal...

Contingency in case of USA potentially getting mood swings down the road

UK is much more attached to Australia than USA (emotionally speaking)

As a strategic location Australia is a useful rear base for US activities in Asia... remember that half of this is about containing China to stop China and the EU connecting up and trading and realising they don't need the US, but through the trade routes from China to the EU the rest of Asia will be able to get on board and trade with the EU and the US will be left out.

The US is likely wanting to block these trade routes China is developing to the EU and instead to get Asia to trade across the Pacific with the US instead.

GarryB wrote:What I really don't understand is why include the UK in this deal... the French were already negotiating these subs... they could have changed them to nuke powered subs which the subs they were selling originally were...

.........................

It is also a huge project with Australia and for the UK closer cooperation and ties with the old empire is something they are going to need to compensate for the loss of direct access to the EU market.

I can't say I am upset about France losing thing contract... but what did they say over the Mistrals... business is business... they would have made the third and fourth Mistrals by now and the first two would be operation in the Pacific or Northern Fleet most likely...  more money they have thrown away for the Americans...

It will be interesting to see what they do.... will this see them leave HATO and perhaps push them to creating a EU military force and distance themselves more from the US?

Seems to have been the perfidious France not UK this time.

Apparently at the Macron/Aus PM meet in June the PM complained about the continuing increases in costs, the delayed timescales and the reduced level of technical transfer including critical sections to be French made. Back in 2016 the French boasted that it would mean 4000 new local jobs for them and the few hundred Aus technical people are mainly in France not Adelaide. The French seem to have, in their Gallic way, shrugged their shoulders saying 'c'est la vie'. That was their last chance to stop the AUS/US/UK plot that had already been running for a year.

Seem to be not a lot of cancellation payments either as the contract was split into phases, most not yet signed. Also not certain what those Aus Tech guys are going to do for at least the next 18 months while a decision is made on what to do next. This whole thing is going to cost a fortune, that I doubt Australia has.

It could be 5-6 years as a minimum before the Aussies get hold of say a couple of leased second hand LA class US boats (with part US crews?). Meaning they have to do more upgrades to the Collins class boats. The Chinese must be laughing their heads off, Taiwan, the apparent reason for this, is likely to be sorted one way or the other before any of these new boats ever hit the water..

The obvious French revenge, if the have the balls, is to refuse to renew the EU's Russian sanctions this autumn.