It happened in World wars of the last century, and has passed again in Ukraine after the invasion of Russia. We talk about the factor conversion Automotive in military production plants, a story that was news again a few months ago in Germany when the almighty Rheinmetall, the largest defense contractor, began to negotiate with Volkswagen himself To convert one of its plants in tank producer. However, the news that has been known in the last hours is, perhaps, even more surprising.
France does not want to be left behind. It We have counted Before, the Ukraine War has transformed in just three years the Combat drone In the tactical weapon more influential of the 21st century, relegating many traditional doctrines to the archive and forcing European powers to adapt to a war reality that moves through invisible swarms, artificial intelligence and remote maneuvers. In that context, France has decided not to be left behind.
THE PACT. The most recent and surprising announcement: the collaboration between Renault and a French SME of the defense sector To produce drones Combat in Ukrainian soil, a movement that marks a radical turn in the industrial strategy of Paris. As The Minister of Defense explained Sébastien Lecornu, it is a “Win-Win” agreement with Ukraine, in which the automotive group joins a specialized firm to establish assembly lines within the country at war (exact locations have not been revealed for obvious reasons for security).
Nor has it specified what type of models, although it is known that They will be destined both to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the French army, which seeks to train with systems directly developed in the real operating environment.
Local production with Ukrainian brain. The essence of the agreement is, not only in the physical transfer of the assembly chains to Ukraine, but in the Explicit trust deposited in the experience of Ukrainian technicians, engineers and operators. Lecornu lo has expressed clearly: “They are better than us designing drones and, above all, developing the accompanying doctrine.” In fact, French personnel will not be sent to factories: production will be completely national In Ukrainian terms, reinforcing kyiv’s war economy at the same time and France’s military learning capacity.
This synergy between real -time tactical knowledge and heavy industrial capabilities puts Ukraine in a central position as a warpacket pole. The most notorious example: the “Spiderweb” operationin which drones hidden in civil trucks were deployed thousands of kilometers from the border, attacking Russian aerodromes in Siberia. These tactics, impossible to anticipate only a decade ago, today are raw material for military strategy from all over.
A European industry. The truth is that France It is not the only power that has decided to manufacture in Ukraine. The trend comes long and we count it last week: Europe bets for making the country invaded by Russia its new defense platform. Finland has already established A production plant of drones with local partners and start mass production in 2025.
The Netherlands have committed 700 million euros To this industry, the United Kingdom will invest additional hundreds next year, and Norway has Redi -retracted military funds specifically for the development and manufacture of Ukrainian drones. In parallel, NATO has decided to institutionalize this impulse with a specific mechanism of Armament productionannounced at the last Ramstein summit. No doubt, for Ukraine, that plans to manufacture more than 4.5 million drones By 2025, these agreements represent a vital source of resources, technology and industrial legitimacy.
France to counterreloj. Despite its historical influence on military, France has been one of the great lags in the technological career of the drone. Such and as he acknowledged General Jean-Paul Perruche, former director of the EU military General Staff, the country spoke of drones already in the 80s, but the lack of “important” conflicts caused development to stagnate, while the United States, China and even advanced.
Today, the French army has Around 3,000 dronesa modest figure compared to the Ukrainian vision of millions deployed in the coming months. A fact to place it in perspective: in the front, the 70% of destruction Russian team is already attributed to drones, not tanks or classical artillery. France, like other allies, is recognizing that the unmanned revolution is no longer a promise of the future, but a present unquestionable.
The war as a catalyst. In short, France has made the decision to be Main actor in Ukraine with a collaboration that has several readings and with the symbolic figure of Renault on the front. These ties between one of the most historical car companies on the planet and the military industry is not just an example of pragmatic adaptation to a prolonged conflict: it is also a sign that the 21st century defense economy is already does not distinguish between civil and military.
The alliance with Ukraine, based on a logic of complementarity (experience in combat by kyiv, industrial capacity by Paris) represents a New cooperation model European against hybrid and prolonged threats. While the battlefield is digitized and the airspace becomes a swarm Of sensors, ammunition and cameras, the drone is no longer just an accessory, it is the backbone of the modern military strategy.
On that board, Ukraine is positioned as the experimental laboratory more relevant From the planet, and France (with Renault) does not want to lose that train.
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