PARIS, April 9: France is to ramp up explosive drone stocks by up to 400 percent by 2030, draft legislation showed Wednesday, as the country seeks to accelerate rearmament to face an aggressive Russia.
The military spending bill was presented after France's top commanders said the country must be ready in the next few years for a clash with Russia and that NATO should adapt to produce more weapons and faster.
The government on Wednesday presented its updated military planning law, adding another 36 billion euros ($42 billion) to France's defence spending between 2024 and 2030, on top of the 413 billion euros ($483 billion) already allocated.
"Our armed forces must be capable of responding to a major engagement within a timeframe that none of us can predict," Defence Minister Catherine Vautrin said following a meeting of top defence and security officials.
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According to the revised legislation, which is due to be presented to parliament, the annual budget would reach 76.3 billion euros in 2030, representing 2.5 percent of gross domestic product, compared with 57.1 billion euros for this year.
The legislation does not foresee an increase in the size of France's armed forces, which remains at 210,000 active-duty personnel, 225 combat aircraft and 15 first-rate frigates.
The conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have prompted a particular focus on stocks of missiles and shells. NATO commanders say the military bloc must respond to challenges such as Russia and Iran mass-producing drones.
According to the draft legislation, an additional 8.5 billion euros will be allocated to boost stockpiles of ammunition between now and 2030, bringing the total to 26 billion euros.
While stock levels are confidential, they are set to rise by 400 percent for all types of remotely operated munitions such as explosive drones, and by 85 percent for Scalp cruise missiles.
Stocks of torpedoes are to go up by 230 percent and those of surface-to-air missiles by 30 percent.
An additional two billion euros will be allocated to procurement of drones of all types, bringing the total investment to 8.4 billion euros.
The French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), a top think tank, warned in November that Europe could struggle to quickly produce enough weapons in case of a direct confrontation with Russia.
