FRENCH MILITARY BUILDUP IN INDIAN OCEAN TAKES SHAPE WITH INFRASTRUCTURE OVERHAUL IN MAYOTTE AND REUNION
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu traveled to Reunion and Mayotte alongside Minister Catherine Vautrin to announce a series of operational capacity increases across the Indian Ocean zone. Lecornu, who previously served as minister for overseas territories and defense, committed to returning in early 2027 to assess implementation of the upgrades. The visits signal a coordinated push to strengthen military infrastructure and surveillance capabilities across the region’s most strategic locations.
Mayotte is receiving the most substantial reinforcement. Five hundred military personnel are now stationed on the island, with the 5th Foreign Legion Regiment (5e RE) recently expanded as part of a broader transition from detachment to full regimental status. The regiment has grown from just under 300 active-duty soldiers to 365, supplemented by approximately 60 reservists and 10 civilian staff. A support company was established in late June, incorporating newly created units designed to handle complex operations. That support structure includes a landing engagement assistance section, a mixed engineering section with two combat engineering groups and one work group, the Naval Training and Hardening Center previously attached to command and logistics, a naval support group, and two reserve sections.
The operational footprint is expanding well beyond personnel. Four existing radars managed by the Interior Ministry will be replaced as part of a modernization effort. The French military is introducing long-endurance drones, embarked drones, and tethered balloons to address what has been a significant gap in aerial surveillance capacity. Previously, the zone operated with only a basic light surveillance aircraft and a gendarmerie helicopter, the Ecureuil. A new surveillance aircraft is scheduled to arrive in September. The number of interceptor vessels will increase to 13 by 2028, up from nine currently and just four in 2017. Border police and customs authorities operate these vessels, with the Navy maintaining operational readiness and coordinating maritime activities.
Naval presence is intensifying as well. Lecornu announced that surface vessel deployments will reach 191 days this year. A permanent forward military post will be established at Mtsamboro. The 5e RE has acquired four modified river engineering boats adapted for coastal navigation and is currently testing drone models with extended operational range, though specific models remain unspecified.
Meanwhile, Reunion is receiving a permanent detachment of two Cougar helicopters from the Army, marking a meaningful shift in air support architecture. The Armed Forces of the Southern Indian Ocean Zone (FAZSOI) previously relied exclusively on Marine helicopters, which were often unavailable when surveillance frigates deployed to French Southern and Antarctic Territories or operated further north. The Cougar deployment enables rapid crisis response for terrorism, maritime piracy, or potential unrest in Mayotte without waiting for mainland reinforcement. Reunion has also been designated to receive an A400M transport aircraft by the end of the decade. An A400M conducted extended operations in the zone during August, and the Pegase mission is scheduled to land there in late September or early October with Rafale fighter jets and a Phoenix refueling aircraft.
These capacity increases follow Cyclone Chido but reflect broader operational concerns. Rising terrorist risks in the Indian Ocean and expanding Russian activity in the region have prompted the French military to strengthen its infrastructure footprint. Madagascar’s longstanding interest in the Scattered Islands, which contain significant fish stocks and potentially rare earth minerals and hydrocarbons on the seabed, adds another layer of strategic urgency to the French military presence in the zone.
Whether the 2027 timeline Lecornu set for his follow-up assessment will prove sufficient to judge the full effect of these upgrades, particularly the drone testing and the A400M deployment still years away, remains the open question hanging over the entire effort.