The President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, has just decided, on the proposal of the Minister of Defense and the Chief of Defense Staff, to launch Operation Resilience. This unprecedented military operation will be dedicated to supporting the public services and the French people in the fields of health, logistics and protection.
(Illustration source: French MoD)
The unprecedented health crisis France is facing requires the commitment of all. The support of the armed forces in these difficult times for the Nation is not only natural but above all indispensable. The Ministry of the Armed Forces is already fully mobilized, as shown by several medical evacuations by air and sea over the last few days, as well as by the deployment of a field hospital (Military Reanimation Element), which relieves the hospital of Mulhouse, which has been very hardly hit.
In order to federate and coordinate all the actions carried out by the army in support of the collective fight against the epidemic, the President of the Republic launched a dedicated military operation:
Operation Resilience. This operation will be distinct from Operation Sentinel, which continues to focus on its counter-terrorism mission. It will focus on providing aid and support to the population as well as support to public services to deal with the Covid-19 epidemic, in metropolitan France and overseas, in the areas of health, logistics and protection. The armies will be engaged in all sectors where they can provide support for the continuity of the State.
These missions will be adapted to the local context and will be the result of a dialogue with the State authorities on the spot, in compliance with the rules governing the use of armies on the national territory and in accordance with the rules of the armed forces, mobilizing available resources.
Finally, they will take into account the priority of the armed forces continuing their operations for the benefit of the security of the French people, on national territory, in the air, on the seas, in cyberspace and in external theatres.
