Macron petitions Europe to support its own defense industry amid new ‘war economy’

PARIS — French President Emanuel Macron is calling on neighboring nations to support the continent’s defense-industrial base before looking abroad.

Standing before an audience of international weapons makers, military delegations and other stakeholders, Macron made an impassioned plea for Europe to focus inward to defend itself as European nations pledge to increase defense spending amid an evermore unstable geopolitical environment — particularly the war in Ukraine .

France has entered into “a war economy that I believe we will be in for a long time,” he said in a speech Monday at the Eurosatory military technology conference outside Paris. This is the first time he attended the forum since becoming president in 2017, and it is the first iteration of the event since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

The nation will need to invest further in its defense-industrial base as well as become more agile and innovative in order to respond to its troops’ needs while supporting the equipment requests of certain partners, he added.

Macron urged his European compatriots not to repeat previous mistakes. “Spending a lot to buy abroad is not a good idea. We should spend a lot, but we should think in the veins of European strategic autonomy,” he said. “We need to reinforce a European technology and defense-industrial base.”

About 73% of this year’s Eurosatory attendees hail from European nations, according to the event’s organizer, COGES, which is a subsidiary of the Group of French Industries for Land and Air-land Defense and Security, otherwise known as GICAT.

Macron acknowledged the many ongoing collaborations between France and its neighbors, but said there is more to be done to develop joint programs, improve partnerships and encourage European sovereignty. As he lauded the success of French exports to nations such as Indonesia and Egypt, he also pledged to advocate for additional foreign investment.

“You will have me at your side to convince the investors of the world to join this sector and to advance it,” he said.

At the same time, European countries must become more willing to accept “cooperation” across their programs and to better standardize offers to strengthen competitiveness on the global market, Macron noted.

“I see here what is the reality of the French market, and what is the reality of the American market,” he said. “The second invests more than us, but it has a more simplified offer.”

“A real European standardization is what is needed,” particularly in the cyber, space and maritime domains,” he added.

French President Emmanuel Macron, center, and Armed Forces Minister Sébastien Lecornu, left, stand near a Griffon armored personnel carrier on the floor of Eurosatory on June 13, 2022. (Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

Since his first term began in 2017, Macron has been strongly pro-European. He supported the launch of the European Defence Fund and contributed to the European Union’s nascent “Strategic Compass” document. Since his election to the presidency, France’s military has steadily increased its budget , investing a cumulative €26 billion (U.S. $27 billion) in defense over the past five years, according to the Armed Forces Ministry .

Geopolitical events — from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to ongoing conflicts in the Sahel region — prompted Macron to ask his military leaders to adjust the six-year defense spending plan, known as the 2019-2025 military program law. The revised plan should be completed in the next few weeks, he added.

Macron was reelected to his second and final five-year term in April. He walked the Eurosatory floor and visited French industry booths Monday alongside his newly selected armed forces minister, Sébastien Lecornu.

Vivienne Machi is a reporter based in Stuttgart, Germany, contributing to Defense News' European coverage. She previously reported for National Defense Magazine, Defense Daily, Via Satellite, Foreign Policy and the Dayton Daily News. She was named the Defence Media Awards' best young defense journalist in 2020.

巴黎——法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙呼吁邻国在考虑对外寻求发展之前，先支持欧洲大陆的国防工业基础。

在国际武器制造商、军事代表团和其他利益相关者面前，马克龙热情呼吁欧洲将注意力集中在内部，以保卫自身。与此同时，欧洲各国承诺在日益不稳定的地缘政治环境中增加国防开支，尤其是在乌克兰战争的背景下。

他在周一于巴黎郊外举行的欧洲防务展（Eurosatory）军事技术会议上发表讲话时表示，法国已经进入“我认为我们将长期处于战时经济状态”。这是他自2017年就任总统以来首次出席该论坛，也是自新冠疫情爆发以来该论坛的首次举办。

他补充说，为了满足军队的需求，同时支持某些伙伴的装备请求，国家需要进一步投资国防工业基础，并变得更加灵活和创新。

马克龙敦促欧洲同胞不要重蹈覆辙。“大量采购海外产品并非明智之举。我们应该加大投入，但必须从欧洲战略自主的角度出发，”他说道。“我们需要加强欧洲的科技和国防工业基础。”

据本次活动的组织者 COGES（法国陆空防务安全工业集团 (GICAT) 的子公司）称，今年 Eurosatory 的与会者中约有 73% 来自欧洲国家。

马克龙肯定了法国与其邻国之间正在进行的诸多合作，但他表示，在制定联合项目、改善伙伴关系和促进欧洲主权方面，仍有许多工作要做。他赞扬了法国对印尼和埃及等国出口的成功，并承诺将积极争取更多外国投资。

他说：“我会站在你身边，说服世界各地的投资者加入这个行业，推动它的发展。”

马克龙指出，与此同时，欧洲各国必须更加愿意接受在其各项计划中进行“合作”，并更好地规范方案，以增强在全球市场上的竞争力。

他说：“我在这里看到了法国市场的现实，也看到了美国市场的现实。后者的投资比我们多，但它的产品更简单。”

“我们需要的是真正的欧洲标准化，”他补充道，“尤其是在网络、太空和海事领域。”

2022年6月13日，法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙（中）和武装部队部长塞巴斯蒂安·勒科尔努（左）站在欧洲防务展（Eurosatory）展厅内的一辆“狮鹫”装甲运兵车旁。（Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images）

自2017年首次就任以来，马克龙一直坚定地支持欧洲一体化。他支持启动欧洲防务基金，并为欧盟新近制定的“战略指南针”文件做出了贡献。据法国武装部队部统计，自他当选总统以来，法国军方预算稳步增长，过去五年累计国防投入达260亿欧元（约合270亿美元）。

从俄罗斯入侵乌克兰到萨赫勒地区持续不断的冲突，一系列地缘政治事件促使马克龙要求军方领导人调整为期六年的国防开支计划，即2019-2025年军事计划法案。他补充说，修订后的计划应该会在未来几周内完成。

马克龙于四月再次当选，开始了他的第二个也是最后一个五年任期。周一，他与新任命的武装部队部长塞巴斯蒂安·勒科尔努一同参观了欧洲防务展，并走访了法国工业展位。

薇薇安·马奇是驻德国斯图加特的一名记者，主要负责《防务新闻》的欧洲报道。她此前曾为《国家防务杂志》、《防务日报》、《卫星通讯》、《外交政策》和《代顿每日新闻》撰稿。2020年，她荣获防务媒体奖最佳青年防务记者称号。