Maîtriser la puissance de feu. Un défi pour les forces terrestres

Over the last few decades, in order to limit the risk of collateral damage, tailoring the effects of firepower has become a main concern for Western armed forces.
The complexity of the task, however, can greatly vary according to the environment. Land forces have to use direct and indirect firepower in a complex terrain, for a diversity of missions, using a range of different systems, to achieve lethal and non-lethal effects. This thus raises the question of how land forces, and especially the French Army, confront this requirement. This study assesses land forces’ capabilities and needs in terms of tailoring the effects of firepower, according to the type of operation or to the environment they work in, and analyzes the risks and opportunities of a greater reliance on precision-guided fires.
This content is available in French: Maîtriser la puissance du feu. Un défi pour les forces terrestres
Related centers and programs
Discover our other research centers and programsFind out more
Discover all our analysesThe Evolving Role of Nuclear Rhetoric in Iran’s Strategic Calculus
How has the Iranian strategic discourse about nuclear weapons and deterrence evolved?
Design, Destroy, Dominate. The Mass Drone Warfare as a Potential Military Revolution
The widespread use of drones observed in Ukraine—both in terms of the scale of the fleets deployed and their omnipresence in the operations of both belligerents—appears to meet the conditions of a genuine military revolution.
The Hunt for Economic Security: The Role of Navies in Deterring Threats to the Maritime Economy
The maritime domain is currently faced with a wide variety of threats, such as climate change, economic warfare, shadow fleet operations, protection of critical infrastructures, and illicit activities ranging from illegal fishing to piracy. Navies suffer from inherent limitations when deterring threats to the global maritime economy: their global presence and permanence limits their credibility in terms of deterrence, their focus usually set on immediate deterrence, implementing deterrence by punishment in and from the naval domain is difficult and costly.
A Fragile Consensus? The Pressure on the Norm Against Nuclear Testing
Apart from North Korea, no state has conducted explosive nuclear tests in the 21st century, reflecting the emergence of a strong international norm against such testing.