France will allocate an additional €36 billion to the military by 2030

The French National Assembly has approved a bill to allocate an additional 36 billion euros for the needs of the national armed forces through 2030. The relevant amendments to the Military Programming Act were adopted in the first reading by a vote of 440 in favor, with 122 deputies voting against. 

This was reported by Ukrinform.

 After the vote, Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin stated that this law will allow for an effective response to growing global threats. She added that the allocated funds will be used to increase the production of ammunition and drones, modernize the fighter aviation fleet, restructure the tank forces, and regain control of outer space.

The legislative initiative was supported by pro-government political forces and representatives of the Socialist Party, while deputies from the far-right “National Rally” and a number of other left-wing forces opposed it. According to the head of the Defense Ministry, the government will also begin drafting a new Defense White Paper that will take into account the current evolution of the global geostrategic situation. The bill, approved by the lower house of parliament, is expected to be submitted to the Senate for consideration on June 2.

The French Ministry of Defense has officially announced a major review of its military planning strategy through 2030. 

French President Emmanuel Macron has officially launched a large-scale program to build a new-generation aircraft carrier, known as PANG (Porte-Avions de Nouvelle Génération).