France plans for leaner, smarter military

FRANCE announced a vision for its 21st-century military — a leaner, smarter and more high-tech force, capable of detecting threats like terrorism early and deploying quickly to battlefields abroad.

The outlook was laid out in the first top-to-bottom review of the defence posture of this nuclear-armed country in 14 years.

The review, nearly a year in the making, suggests that France wants to move closer to the NATO alliance — while maintaining a free hand on its commitments.