At the Souge camp, in Martignas-sur-Jalle and Saint-Médard-en-Jalles (Gironde).
Back to basics? This Tuesday 1er April 2025, Sofins (Special Operations Forces Innovation Network Seminar), biennial lounge dedicated to special forces, opens onto the Souge military camp, stronghold of 13e Parachutist dragons regiment (13e Rdp), in the heart of the pine -sodes and under the sun of Gironde. After the introductory speech of the special operations commander Michel Delpit, the first conference concerns the role of special forces in the scenario of a high intensity war and the changes necessary to achieve it.
If the beginnings of the special forces were posed during the First World War in 1914-1918, with the franc bodies specialists of the “helping hand” magnified by Bertrand Tavernier in his film Captain Conan (1996), their official birth was acted in 1941 in the United Kingdom, with the creation of the Special Air Service (SAS) and the Special Boat Service (SBS). The latter form the first French special forces units, some of which keep emblems to date (a winged sword) or currencies (“Who dare wins”) from the British SAS. In the context of a major conflict, the Second World War, these elite units were responsible for driving daring raids behind the German lines, such as Operation Frankton in December 1942.
In the French army, the special forces today include command of Special Actions Terre (Cast) with the paratroopers of 13e RDP, those of 1er Marine infantry parachutist regiment (1er RPIMA) and the 4the special forces helicopter regiment (4e Rhfs); The maritime force of marine and commandos (Forfusco), with its seven marine commandos (Jaubert, Hubert, Kieffer, etc); And the Air Special Forces Brigade (BFSA) with its air parachutist commandos (CPA n ° 10, n ° 20 and n ° 30), as well as its transport and helicopter squadrons (respectively “Poitou” and “Pyrenees”). The three components have been overseen since 1992 by commanding special operations (COS).
The 1st RPIMA is the only French unit affiliated with the SAS appellation as well as its motto Who Dares Wins, “who dares” in French. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/zbgmy4lm2u
– French special forces 🌟 (@fs_francaises_) June 9, 2024
Modern war is multimilious and multichamps
The roots of these atypical soldiers therefore grow in the soil of two extremely deadly world wars. During the Cold War, the special forces discreetly ensure the interests of France, mainly within the framework of colonial and postcolonial wars. After the fall of the Berlin Wall there are so-called “militaro-humanitarian” operations (ex-Yugoslavia, Somalia, etc.) endorsed by the United Nations (UN). Since September 11, 2001, French special forces mainly have been fighting jihadist guerrillas alongside conventional French forces within the framework of the “war against terrorism”, especially in Afghanistan, then in the Sahel and the Levant.
Since February 24, 2022, Western and NATO staff now envisages their commitment to a high intensity war triggered by Russia. Or a confrontation between comparable military powers, characterized by a high level of violence, losses and destruction. The reverse of asymmetrical conflicts between unconventional forces, which has monopolized Western armies for more than two decades, faced with predominantly Islamist insurrections.
NATO prepares for “An attack in the Black Sea of the Operational Group of Russian Forces in Transnistria, an offensive in Ukraine of the Russian forces (3e Army Interarmes de la Garde) regenerated by a ceasefire and an attack of the airborne troops of the Russian Federation against Denmark, Finland and Sweden, “ Indicates Colonel Julien of the Expert Command Expert Center (Celia), recalling that one of the challenges for special forces consists in being able to operate effectively within a coalition.
This change of software implies a kind of return to sources in the use of special forces. In the event of a major commitment, they will have – “as in forty” – infiltrate discreetly behind enemy lines to destroy high value targets, collect intelligence and support networks of supporters. Only here, the context has changed, as shown by the many feedbacks (REDUX) concerning the war in Ukraine: the special forces are now evolving in an even more hostile environment.
In modern high intensity war, the conflict area is saturated with drones and sensors, establishing a “transparency” from the battlefield and drastically reducing the life expectancy of everything that is visible or emits waves. In addition, the war takes place not only on earth, at sea and in the air, but also in space and the so -called intangible (cyber and informational) fields, which is described as a multimilious and multichamps war (M2MC). Finally, the electronic war, that is to say the jamming and the interception of sensors and communications, is permanent.
Transformations on all floors
All this represents a considerable challenge for special forces, “Uncomfortable in the fray”whose effectiveness is based on their ability to infiltrate behind the enemy lines to operate there without being detected. These will potentially have to desert their bases which constitute as many targets for the enemy, “take the maquis” and establish links with armed movements abroad, in order to use them against the enemy. They will deploy in small groups, rather than in the vast operational forces (Task Forces) which prevailed in Sahelian and Levantines operations: saber, takuba, etc.
It will be necessary to bypass the “bubbles” A2/AD (denial of access and prohibition of zone) by escaping from the anti -aircraft and anti -annual defenses, on arrival as well as back. To do this, more stealthy means of transport are envisaged-the helicopters being particularly noisy-in particular parachute jumps at very high altitude or more efficient miniaturized submarines. The commandos simultaneously study new lure and jamming systems, as well as drones playing the role of escorts for planes and helicopters.
Like the very high altitude, the flight at very low altitude can escape detection. Air Force special forces are also working on individual air transport systems, to avoid multiple losses if one of them is shot. The same logic already leads the operators of the special forces to move in quad or on motorbikes, rather than all together in a troop transport vehicle. A strengthening of satellite intelligence capacities – as well as very high altitude through drones – also appears essential.
Then, faced with the scrambling and enemy sensors, cyberoffensive capacities are necessary, but also resistant equipment, capable of operating in a blurred environment. Special forces must be able to “dilute” in the electromagnetic spectrum, emitting in the middle of other transmitters, sometimes with rustic means.
On the armament side, the units need a greater destruction capacity, such as drone swarms, hypervélocious missiles and cable ammunition (MTO), also called prowler ammunition (such as drones-kamikazes, for example). Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into weapons and command systems, in particular for target detection as well as decision and piloting aid.
Cultural evolution and inventiveness
French special forces want to strengthen their informational control capacities in parallel, which aims to influence the perceptions of adversaries and local populations in a favorable sense of current operations. The command of Special Actions Terre (CAST) has already absorbed the joint center of environmental actions (CIAE), specializing in psychological warfare. In March 2025, Cast formalized the creation of the 712e transmissions, a new unit specifically oriented towards “Influence computer struggle” facing “Our strategic competitors” and parked at the Souge camp alongside 13e RDP.
The command of Special Actions Terre (Cast), has a new unit dedicated to “influence computer struggle” (in other words, psychological operations in the Cyber field), the 712nd transmission company. www.linkedin.com/posts/comman …
(Image or embed)– Antoine Hasday (@antoinehasday.bsky.social) March 21, 2025 at 4:32 pm
Change is also cultural. “The persistence of crises and the fight against terrorism shaped the marine commandosanalyzes an officer of the Forfusco. In hostage release missions, the safeguarding of human life primaled, with a best controlled lethal effect possible. Today we need increased lethality to destroy the opponent. ” More prosaic ways, better mastery of English and NATO procedures is essential to fight effectively alongside the allies of France.
Finally, special forces will have to be inventive to preserve the surprise effect in their actions. In the scenario of a high intensity war, the staff will have to resist the temptation to “consume” them by sending them too close to the front in search of lesser-importance goals. It is behind the enemy lines, focused on significant gains, that they will be best used.
