The desire for strategic independence and the narrowness of the domestic defence market, combined with the need to build solid military cooperation, have led France to develop an ambitious military equipment export policy. This strategy is part of an international context marked by higher volumes of armed conflict, increased arms spending and a global market dominated by five countries (United States, Russia, France, Germany and China) which accounted for 78.5% of the volume of international military trade between 2017 and 2021. In this competitive market, France has moved from fifth to third place in the world by doubling its market share (11% in 2021), resulting in an upturn in arms exports in 2021
(€11.7bn) - the third best French performance in this sector. It is mainly based on the successes of large companies in the aviation and naval sectors. In the report published today, the Court of Accounts describes the strong commitment of the public authorities to supporting the export of military hardware and the mechanisms put in place to this end, which it considers to be generally effective. It nevertheless questions the integration of this support strategy into the overall action of the Ministry of the Armed Forces, and whether the political uncertainties and financial risks associated with this policy are properly taken into account. Finally, it underlines the international constraints and the increasing ethical and transparency requirements to which the arms trade is subject.
