{"id":44182,"date":"2023-11-27T13:07:05","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T12:07:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ihedn.fr\/?p=44182"},"modified":"2025-09-05T08:38:23","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T07:38:23","slug":"la-reserve-des-armees-pivot-des-forces-morales-de-la-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ihedn.fr\/en\/notre-selection\/la-reserve-des-armees-pivot-des-forces-morales-de-la-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"The armed forces reserve, the backbone of the nation's moral forces"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Soldiers from the 24e <\/sup>The Vincennes Infantry Regiment, the Army's only reserve regiment, during Exercise Vulcain, held in the Allier region from 30 October to 3 November 2023. <\/span><\/i><\/p>

Antoine Delaunay\/DICoD\/Minist\u00e8re des Arm\u00e9es<\/span><\/i><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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A baker during the week, a soldier on patrol for Operation Sentinelle at the weekend, or a communications officer in the civilian world and assistant to a spokesperson in the Navy: these are just two examples of the kind of commitment that the French armed forces reserve provides. By 31 December, more than 40,000 men and women will have signed up to the Operational Reserve (OR), alongside the country's 200,000 active servicemen and women. This support is slightly more feminised than in the professional army. In fact, 22.6% of its personnel are women (and even 33% among new arrivals), compared with 16.8% in the active army.<\/p>

To meet the President's ambition, the armed forces have developed a dedicated strategy: the \"Reserves Plan 2035\" (PR35). It formalises the various processes that will lead to achieving the objective of increasing the number of reserves, as well as upgrading their quality. The aim is to adapt the format of the French armed forces to the new geostrategic situation and to changes in society. 3,800 new volunteers will be recruited in 2024, 4,000 a year in 2025 and 2026, 6,000 in 2027 and 2028, and 8,000 in 2029 and 2030. The number of volunteers will therefore have doubled in seven years. And by 2035, the number should even reach 105,000, giving a ratio of one reservist for every two active servicemen.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\"A MAJOR CHALLENGE FOR THE ARMED FORCES<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\"This is a major challenge for the armed forces\", comments Brigadier General Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric Barbry, head of the national cohesion division (in charge of the reserves, youth, relations with the national education system and with companies) at the Armed Forces General Staff (EMA), and Joint Delegate for the Reserves (DIAR). \"This is a major undertaking that represents a real break with the past, a paradigm shift in the way the reserves are used within the armed forces.<\/p>

\"The reserves, because there are several of them. The Citizens' Defence and Security Reserve (RCDS) currently comprises 4,200 volunteers in civilian dress, whose commitment (with no age limit) is supported by prestigious ambassadors such as astronaut Thomas Pesquet (for the French Air Force), Michelin-starred chef Thierry Marx (French Foreign Legion) and basketball player Boris Diaw (French Navy). The general staff are currently working on measures \"to make better use of this reserve at the right level\", says General Barbry.<\/p>

The RO is divided into two categories: the second level (RO2) concerns 60,000 former active servicemen, who are obliged to be available for 5 years after leaving the service. \"Today, this reserve is still under-utilised,\" notes the general officer. \"Our aim is therefore to upgrade it so that we have a strategic reserve that has already been trained and is capable of consolidating active units and regenerating them, if necessary, in the event of a major conflict. Passed last summer, the 2024-2030 Military Programming Act already allows for an increase in the duration and use of call-up for these reservists, from 5 to 25 days' call-up over five years.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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CONTRIBUTION OF SKILLS, PROTECTION OF THE TERRITORY...<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The other category, most affected by the exponential increase, is the Primary Operational Reserve (RO1): volunteers who put their skills at the service of the armed forces in return for payment, wearing uniforms and whose age limit for enlistment has just been raised to 72. They sign a contract lasting from 1 to 5 years.<\/p>

Thanks to the increase in these numbers, the use of the armed forces reserve will be increased on a daily basis and its missions renewed in three areas: protection of the territory, intervention alongside the active forces, and contribution of skills.<\/p>

Depending on the missions to be carried out, the armed forces draw on one of the two segments making up the RO1 :<\/p>