Romania, Estonia and Lithuania, these are the eastern NATO territories in which France wants to strengthen its military presence by sending brigades and armored infantry vehicles by the beginning of 2023. This was announced by Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu during a hearing before the Senate Defense Commission on Tuesday 11 October, explaining that the decision was made “considering the situation on the eastern flank of NATO and the violence of the fighting in Ukraine”.
In Romania, 500 soldiers sent from Paris have already been present since the beginning of the conflict, and an increase in the contingent of 200 units is expected. French men and armored vehicles are also arriving for Estonia, already present since 2017 along with several airmen who participate in the sky police of the Baltic country. Finally, the reinforcement sent to Lithuania by Macron’s government will be focused at high altitudes, which will deploy some Rafale fighter planes from the Dassault company. Minister Lecornu also announced an increase in military spending of € 3 billion for 2023.
The expansion to the east of the presence of France represents an outlet for its army, which since the end of its operation in the Sahel region has repatriated many troops without knowing where to put them. But it is above all a world to recover from the embarrassment felt by the Elysée since it was revealed that France ranks eleventh for sending military aid to Ukraine. An unsatisfactory balance sheet for one of the most intrusive armies in the world.
In fact, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense today published a disturbing video in which it takes up a song by Brigitte Bardot and several clichés on the romanticism of the French with the following text: “If you really want to win our hearts, nothing can beat 155 mm artillery”, attaching videos of Caesar self-propelled howitzers.
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