As part of the twice yearly follow-up of the Lancaster House bilateral treaties on defence, the latest joint Franco-British meeting took place at the French Senate on 12 July. The meeting brought together French and British parliamentarians : Members of the National Assembly and the Senate, and Members of the House of Commons Defence Committee and the House of Lords Committee on International Relations and the EU sub-Committee on External Affairs.
The Lancaster House Treaties (2010) set up close cooperation on defence issues between the two countries, both at the operational and industrial levels, with a combined joint expeditionary force and several major industrial projects.
This working meeting brought together 18 parliamentarians from the four chambers of the French and British Parliaments and is a strong political signal of the solidity of Franco-British bilateral defence relations. The meeting reaffirmed that even though the UK had decided to leave the EU, the Lancaster House treaties are still essential to the security of both Nations.
The French Military Chief of Staff, General Pierre de Villiers, as well as the French Procurement Agency (Direction Générale de l'Armement) took part to the discussions which will continue to be held regularly.