PARIS — France will reduce by 7,500 a planned 34,000-strong cut in military personnel set out in the multiyear budget law, President François Hollande's office said on Wednesday.
Of the military jobs saved, 1,500 will be effective this year, the president's office said in a statement.
"As he announced in the New Year's wishes to the Armed Forces on board the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle on Jan. 14, the president held a meeting of the Defense Council Jan. 21," the Elysées office said in a statement.
"During the council meeting, he decided to cut by 7,500 the staff reduction planned by the Ministry of Defense over 2015-2019 under the military budget law, of which 1,500 in 2015.
"He asked for work to be launched quickly to revise by the summer the military budget law," the statement said.
Hollande said last week there would be a revision of military staff cuts in view of the "exceptional situation" facing France, which France has been in turmoil since the killing of Charlie Hebdo journalists and other civilians by three gunmen.
Some 34,000 jobs were due to be slashed under the present version of the 2014-19 military budget law, reflecting France's pledge to reduce its national deficit.
The president's statement is "worrying" as it lacked extra funding to pay for the jobs, said Member of Parliament François Cornut-Gentille, who is special reporter on defense spending for the Finance Committee of the lower-house National Assembly.
Defense officials are locked in tough talks with the Finance Ministry, and the former needed a strong sign to hold on to the military budget. "This sign did not come," Cornut-Gentille said.
The military budget law sets a total of €31.4 billion (US $36.3 billion) for 2015, of which €2.4 billion must be found through external funding, dubbed "exceptional receipts," rather than government funds.
Of the external funding, €300 million is due from sale of government property sales, and €2.1 billion from state-owned "project companies." Under the plan, the government orders equipment and hands ownership to the project companies, which deliver the kit to the services. The private sector can also hold shares in the planned project companies.
The government found extra funding for measures announced for the interior and justice ministries, but nothing for defense, Cornut-Gentille said. "Worrying," he said.
Email: ptran@defensenews.com
