Paris demands more weapons and ammunition – and threatens arms companies with expropriation. These two men were switched at birth – they find out 68 years later

Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu is losing his patience. At a press conference in the presence of all members of the French general staff, he said the country’s arms manufacturers had to work faster. This applies in particular to the artillery and ammunition areas.

Lecornu also made it clear that he had the means to get his way. The Fall 2023 Army Law, which stipulates long-term military planning until 2030, explicitly creates the possibility of “requisitions,” that is, seizures of private companies by the state. According to the law, there is a “current or foreseeable threat situation”. Lecornu takes this for granted because of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

“For the first time, I do not rule out resorting to confiscations or putting the military above civilian priorities if cadence and production are not respected.”said the Defense Minister, who came from the Conservatives. He had cited the relevant army law “because it exists,” Lecornu added dryly, as if to give his threat more weight. There could be “no surprise” if the seizure were actually ordered.

According to the law, the government can seize supplies and production resources and compulsorily employ the relevant operating personnel. This applies not only to the actual defense companies such as MBDA, Thales, Dassault or Nexter, but also to their suppliers.

Wake up the companies

Lecornu’s announcement is causing a stir in Paris. For his part, the chairman of the Senate Foreign and Defense Policy Committee, Cédric Perrin, had to make it clear with this announcement that France had “not turned to a war economy”. As long as no claim has been ordered, it cannot be discussed. In recent weeks, President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly used the term “war economy,” long used in Russia since Russia’s attack on Ukraine in 2022, without becoming more specific.

For the time being, Lecornu’s threat appears to be an attempt to shake up the arms industry. His country currently has a shortage of Aster-type air defense missiles, both for shipment to Ukraine and for its own needs. These defensive weapons are manufactured in France and Italy by the defense company MBDA. The current production period is over three years.

The French threat of confiscations in the arms sector reflects European efforts to compensate for the possible loss of US arms aid to Ukraine. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said his country would continue to increase its defense capabilities and also buy companies abroad “so that production can be increased.” However, Pistorius rejects the creation of an actual war economy. In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that his country would build joint arms factories with Ukraine.