Post by Armelle Ferrand-Eynard

This week I attended the Rencontres Défense & Industries – Armement terrestre, organised by the FRS | Fondation pour la recherche stratégique. As someone increasingly drawn to international relations, geopolitics and security, this was a valuable opportunity to explore something that doesn't always get enough attention: the concrete links between defence, industrial capacity and sovereignty. What stood out most is that defence extends well beyond military power. It involves supply chains, production capacity, access to raw materials, technological innovation, and long-term strategic planning. Hearing that framed so directly was clarifying. Also, strategic autonomy is often discussed as a political objective, but it rests on very practical questions: who produces what, where, how fast, and with what dependencies? The conversations on innovation were also striking. The defence sector has to navigate a real tension: the pressure to innovate quickly in response to new technologies and emerging actors, while maintaining the longer industrial cycles that sovereign capabilities actually require. This conference reinforced my interest in the intersections between security, geopolitics, industrial strategy and European sovereignty. It also reminded me how important it is, as a student, to engage with these debates beyond the classroom. Thanks to the FRS and to all the speakers Emmanuel Levacher, Patrick Cansell, Hélène Masson, marc chassillan, Thierry FRANCOU, thierry CADOT, Eva Szego, Éloi Delort and Hugo Coqueret. #InternationalRelations #Geopolitics #Defence #Security #EuropeanSovereignty #StrategicAutonomy #DefenceIndustry #Innovation #makeanimpact