Military

French Army on High Alert, 20,000 Troops Ready to Respond, Top Brass Says

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The French army is ready to immediately engage in combat to defend the country if necessary, General Pierre Schill, the army chief of staff, said in an interview to the Journal du Dimanche.
Sputnik
"If the situation requires it, we are ready for combat starting this evening to protect the French people and the country's vital interests," he told the newspaper in an interview published on Monday.
The French army is undoubtedly prepared for high-intensity warfare with a peer adversary, the general added. A force of 20,000 soldiers is on standby, some of whom are currently deployed abroad, including in Lebanon, Iraq, Estonia and Romania. French instructors have been training Ukrainian soldiers in France and Poland.
The general said that the army's main objective was to develop an ability to adapt to new methods of warfare.
World
Macron: France Experiences Security Issues Across All Country
Earlier, Schill said in his op-ed in March that the French army was ready for the "toughest" engagements after French President Emmanuel Macron repeatedly suggested that Europe should send troops to Ukraine.
Discuss