The war in Ukraine has brought industrialized warfare back to Europe, with Russia and Ukraine engaging in a massive conflict. NATO has supported Ukraine, providing equipment and intelligence, which has helped to shift the tide of the war. The conflict has shown that modern warfare consumes resources at an astonishing rate, with Russia losing over 1,000 tanks and using up massive amounts of artillery. France, in response, is modernizing its military through the "Scorpion" program, which aims to bring its forces up to the cutting edge with modern technologies and doctrines. The program includes upgrading its light and medium tank forces, as well as its infantry support vehicles, such as the EBRC Jaguar and the VBMR Griffon. France is also planning a second phase of modernization, called "Titan," which will focus on heavy combat forces. The country is preparing for a future where anti-access and area-denial systems will be prevalent, and is working to network its forces and improve their mobility and awareness. However, France's forces still lack depth and the country's defense industry faces challenges in manufacturing large amounts of heavy equipment.
Here are the key facts from the provided text:
1. The war in Ukraine has brought industrialized warfare back to Europe for the first time since World War II.
2. The war in Ukraine involves not just Russia and Ukraine but also a significant amount of the NATO alliance.
3. NATO has not formally joined the war but has provided support to Ukraine to help it fight off the Russian invasion.
4. Ukrainian troops were initially moderately armed and equipped, but NATO quickly provided them with needed personal equipment.
5. The average Ukrainian infantryman is now better equipped than their Russian counterparts, thanks to Western support.
6. The United States has provided significant support to Ukraine, including reconnaissance and surveillance assets, intelligence, and weapons.
7. Russian generals and senior officers are dying at an alarming rate due to US intelligence and recon provided to Ukrainian forces.
8. The war in Ukraine has shown that Russia is not as powerful militarily as it claimed to be.
9. Modern war against a near-peer adversary consumes resources at a rapid rate, with Russian artillery using up 20,000 rounds per day.
10. The US could only undertake a couple of months of high-intensity combat operations before needing to be judicious with its artillery usage.
11. Russia has lost over 1,000 tanks in the fighting, with the number spiking dramatically during Ukraine's counteroffensive.
12. Ukraine is estimated to lose 2 tanks per day, while Russia loses 10 tanks per day, with half of them being abandoned.
13. France has just over 500 tanks, and losing 60 tanks in one month would be a significant number of losses for its army.
14. France is quickly taking note of the lessons from the war in Ukraine and is preparing for the return of industrial warfare.
15. France's military modernization program, named "Scorpion," aims to bring its military up to the cutting edge with modern forces fighting with modern weapons and using modern doctrine.
16. The program includes upgrading France's light and medium tank forces to bring them up to a modern standard of battlefield connectivity.
17. France is focusing on developing a web of systems that networks its forces together, allowing sensors and shooters to freely communicate.
18. The US has a similar system, known as joint all-domain command and control, which has been successful in past conflicts.
19. France is developing new vehicles, such as the EBRC Jaguar, which will replace the forty-year-old AMX 10 RC and ERC 90 Sagaie.
20. The Jaguar will be capable of performing both reconnaissance and fire support roles for infantry forces.
21. France plans to buy nearly 2,000 VBMR Griffon armored personnel carriers to replace its fleet of VABs.
22. The VBMR Griffon will be based on the same 6x6 commercial truck chassis as the Jaguar, making production and maintenance easier.
23. France's next phase of modernization, named "Titan," is projected to start in 2030 and will focus on its heavy combat forces.
24. Titan will include an in-depth study of projected force needs before replacing any vehicles.
25. France expects the future combat environment to be one fraught with anti-access, area-denial systems, where no battle domain will be truly uncontested.
26. France's forces lack serious depth, geared towards fighting fast, mobile skirmishes in sub-Saharan Africa, and would struggle in a high-intensity conflict.
27. France is looking to build up its combat forces and ensure its defense industry can stand up to the challenge of quick and long-term resupply of combat losses.
28. The US and Germany have also identified serious deficiencies in their ability to manufacture large amounts of heavy equipment.
29. US tank production today stands at about 60 vehicles per year, which could be ramped up to 20 per month in war, but this would hardly put a dent in potential losses against a near-peer foe.