And if one day France were attacked, as Ukraine was by Russia, how would it defend itself and by what means? These questions torment many French people, but also political and military personalities.
To prepare for this eventuality, the French armies are preparing for major maneuvers with the Orion exercise. At the beginning of 2023, it will mobilize 12,000 soldiers from the land, air/space, sea and cybernetic armies in national territory.
Arnland vs. Mercury
The setting: the attack on a country, Arnland, by a border power, Mercury, equipped with nuclear weapons and supported by mercenary troops. A scenario reminiscent of the war in Ukraine.
A landing in the south of France
This joint exercise will be carried out in three phases. The first stage, between the end of February and the beginning of May, will be naval aviation. It is based on a landing in the south of France.
During this operation, the carrier battle group was formed around the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and her fleet of Rafales, helicopters, and her Hawkeyse surveillance aircraft. He is also accompanied by an armada made up of combat ships: frigates, a tanker, and an attack submarine.
“The Charles de Gaulle is a mobile naval air base with nuclear force,” recalls Alexandre Marchis, a spokesman for the French Navy, on BFMTV on Monday. “On November 15, he left Toulon for a new mission,” he adds, without specifying where he is or what he should do.
Ground attack on the northeastern front
the second stage, from mid-April to early May, it will be air-to-ground. It will take place in the Ardennes to see if the measures and decisions taken in recent years make it possible or not to face an extreme military situation. The Army’s new Griffon armored vehicles, Leclerc tanks, but also ground-to-air defense systems will be deployed there.
“It will allow us to see if we have enough fuel, ammunition, means of maintenance in the event of a vehicle breakdown”, explains General Jérôme Pellistrandi.
Between these two great sequences, a civil-military phase It will be organized under the auspices of the General Secretariat for Defense and National Security (SGDSN), which will focus on the different means of civilian support for armies in the event of a major confrontation (health, transportation, etc.), reserves, and the fight of the information.
Other European countries (Germany, United Kingdom, Belgium, Italy, Spain) will participate in Orion as well as the United States, which will play a division digitally. In France, it will also be assisted by other ministries that will have to take civil measures to protect and help the population through emergency measures, testing our resilience capacities.
Source: BFM TV
