The French White Paper on defence and national security
NEW VULNERABILITIES
- Terrorism of mass destruction remains a key concern. Indeed, with the prospect of terrorist groups acquiring unconventional weapons, the scale of the threat may increase.
- Ballistic and cruise missile threats will grow within the timeframe of the White Paper as a consequence of the proliferation of more capable missiles putting a broader range of countries within striking distance of Europe.
- Major attacks against information systems are a rising concern, as the combined consequence of the rapidly growing role of cyberspace in societal, economic and security terms, and of the adoption of aggressive cyber-attack techniques and postures by state and non-state actors.
- New and robust espionage activities will be stimulated by the rise of powerful players in the framework of strategies of influence. In the age of globalisation, such activities will cover a broad range of scientific, technological, economic targets alongside more traditional objectives. Disinformation and strategies of influence aiming to destabilize corporate and individual actors will also need to be countered, using the tools of soft power adapted to our networked world.
- Major criminal networks, including narco-traficking have become, and will continue to be, a serious security concern. Criminal networks operate across the continents, from the cocaine cartels of Latin America to the heroin trafickers of Afghanistan, with financial resources comparable to those of certain states. Similarly, the trade in counterfeit goods represents according to the OECD some 5 to 7% of global trade and disproportionately affects Western economies.
- Health risks are emerging, flowing from the convergence of urbanization, crossborder movements of population and the appearance of new pathogens : AIDS, SARS and H5N1 are illustrations of the potential scope of catastrophes, with the prospect of severe consequences in the field of security as in others. Similarly, purely natural catastrophes -earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, and the like – as well as industrial disasters and technological risks take on entirely new proportions as a result of demographic patterns and the forces of globalisation.
- The number of French citizens residing abroad has been rising, reaching 1.5 million in 2008. European solidarity, as well as specific crisis-planning measures will be two important tools in dealing with the risks run by this large and far flung population group.
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