Sebastien Lecornu, the French armed forces minister, said the order “is excellent news for our sovereignty, our security and our armed forces who will benefit from extra Rafales with modernised operational capacities.”
Bryden Spurling, senior research leader for defence and security at RAND, said that there “was clearly reluctance [on the part of Washington and London] to strike the Houthis despite the threat they pose to one of the world’s most important waterways.”
The Navy secretary didn’t say what exactly prompted the review, but the announcement came hours after reports of potential delays with the service’s new frigate.
“These targeted strikes are a clear message that the United States and our partners will not tolerate attacks on our personnel or allow hostile actors to imperil freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most critical commercial routes,” President Joe Biden said.
