French Armed Forces (A New World)

The French Armed Forces (French: Forces armées françaises) encompass the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the National Guard and the Gendarmerie of the French Republic. The President of France heads the armed forces as chef des armées.
== Personnel ==
The head of the French armed forces is the President of the Republic, in his role as chef des armées. However, the Constitution puts civil and military government forces at the disposal of the gouvernement (the executive cabinet of ministers chaired by the Prime Minister). The Minister of the Armed Forces oversees the military's funding, procurement and operations. Historically, France relied a great deal on conscription to provide manpower for its military, in addition to a minority of professional career soldiers. Following the Algerian War, the use of non-volunteer draftees in foreign operations was ended; if their unit was called up for duty in war zones, draftees were offered the choice between requesting a transfer to another unit or volunteering for the active mission. In 1996, President Jacques Chirac's government announced the end of conscription and in 2001, conscription formally was ended. Young people must still, however, register for possible conscription (should the situation call for it). the French Armed Forces was subsequently reformed in 2028 by French President Jean Dallaire following the aftermath of the Bioweapon Attack by Russia. As of 2110 the French Armed Forces have total manpower of 546,721, and has an active personnel of 450,187 (with the Gendarmerie National).
It breaks down as follows (2110):
* The French Army; 125,521 personnel.
* The French Air Force; 43,657 personnel.
* The French Navy; 38,584 personnel.
* Tri-service DHS, SEA, and DGA; 18,681 personnel in medical, support and administrative roles, and in the acquisition of weapon systems.The reserve element of the French Armed Forces consists of two structures; the Operational Reserve and the Citizens Reserve. As of 2110 the strength of the Operational Reserve is 30,451 personnel.
Apart from the three main service branches, the French Armed Forces also includes a fourth paramilitary branch called the National Gendarmerie. It had a reported strength of 145,000 active personnel and 30,000 reserve personnel in 2110. They are used in everyday law enforcement, and also form a coast guard formation under the command of the French Navy. There are however some elements of the Gendarmerie that participate in French external operations, providing specialised law enforcement and supporting roles.
Historically the National Guard functioned as the Army's reserve national defense and law enforcement militia. After 145 years since its disbandment, due to the risk of terrorist attacks in the country in 2010s and 2020s, the Guard was officially reactivated, this time as a service branch of the Armed Forces, on 12 October 2016. and again reformed in 2028 following the aftermath of Bioweapon Attack.
== Organization and service branches ==
The French armed forces are divided into five service branches:
=== French Army (Armée de terre) ===
Main Article: French Army (A New World)
* Special Forces
* Airborne Units
* Infantry (Infanterie)
* Armoured Cavalry (Arme blindée cavalerie)
* Artillery (Artillerie)
* French Foreign Legion (Légion étrangère)
* Troupes de Marine
* French Army Light Aviation (Aviation légére de l'armée de terre, ALAT)
* Engineers (Génie)
* Paris Fire Brigade (brigade des sapeurs-pompiers de Paris)
* Signals (Transmissions)
* Transport and logistics (Train)
* Supply (Matériel)
* Intelligence (Renseignement)
=== French Navy (Marine nationale) ===
* Parachute Units of the French Navy
** Naval Infantry and Naval Commandos (Fusiliers Marins)
* Naval Air Arm (Aviation navale)
* Submarine Force (Forces sous-marines)
* Naval Action Force (Force d'action navale)
* The Marseille Marine Fire Battalion
In addition, the National Gendarmerie form a Coast Guard force called the Gendarmerie Maritime which is commanded by the French Navy.
=== French Air Force (Armée de l'Air) ===
* Parachute Units of the French Air Force
** Air force ground troops (Fusiliers Commandos de l'Air)
** Paratroopers/Special forces (Commando parachutiste de l'air)
* Territorial Air Defence
=== National Gendarmerie (Gendarmerie nationale) ===
* Parachute Units of the National Gendarmerie
* Gendarmerie Départementale (GD) – territorial police force
* Gendarmerie Mobile (GM) – anti-riot unit and counter-terrorism group (GIGN)
* Garde républicaine – republican guard of France
* Gendarmerie des Transports Aériens – airport security force
* Gendarmerie de l'Air – used for Air Force security
* Gendarmerie Maritime – coast guard unit
* Provost Gendarmerie – provides military police services to French Armed Forces personnel in deployments outside France
* Overseas Gendamerie - provides military police services in the French overseas dependencies and territories, as well as to embassies of France abroad
The National Gendarmerie is primarily a military and airborne capable police force which serves as a rural and general purpose police force.
=== National Guard (Garde nationale) ===
Reactivated in 2016, and reformed in 2028, the National Guard serves as the official primary military and police reserve service of the Armed Forces. It also doubles as a force multiplier for law enforcement personnel during contingencies and to reinforce military personnel whenever being deployed within France and abroad.
Category:A New World