The CaMo partnership (Capacité Motorisée) between France and Belgium will see the total reequipment of the Belgian land forces through the acquisition of 382 Griffon multi-role armoured vehicles and 60 Jaguar reconnaissance and combat armoured vehicles, to be delivered from 2025 onwards, for a total investment of some €1.5 billion. CaMo is about much more than procurement, however. The strategic partnership between the two close allies and neighbours is driven by the shared will to deploy together on operations. For that reason, Belgium has also decided to align its doctrine, organisation and training with those that France is developing for its own land forces.

This expert seminar, co-organised by FINABEL (the European Army Interoperability Centre) and Egmont, will assess the benefits of such far-reaching cooperation for the French and Belgian forces, and explore whether it can serve as an example for other European land forces.

Programme

09.00–09.30: Registration & Coffee

09.30–09.40: Welcome & Introduction

– Prof. Dr. Sven BISCOP, Egmont Institute & Ghent University

– Mario BLOKKEN, Director, Permanent Secretariat, FINABEL

09.40–11.00: Panel 1

– Major General Pierre GERARD, Commander, Belgian Land Component

– Colonel Jan PASCAL, French Armed Forces

– Colonel Manuel MONIN, Project Officer, CaMo, Belgian Land Component

– Colonel Erik CLAESSEN, Material Resources, Belgian Armed Forces

11.00–11.30: Coffee

11.30–13.00: Panel 2

– Prof. Dr. Sven BISCOP, Egmont Institute & Ghent University

– Dick ZANDEE, Head, Security Unit, Clingendael Institute, The Hague