Around a hundred young people were simultaneously conducting their Defense and Citizenship Day.
The verdict falls within a few seconds… If their reflective vests do not bear prestigious decorations this Thursday, March 26, this strategic game is the opportunity, above all, to immerse these young people in the heart of contemporary geopolitical issues. There are about a hundred of them participating in their Defense and Citizenship Day. Here, no enlistment, even if creating vocations is not excluded since the second edition of the Operation Orion Juvenile is taking place in parallel within the Bordeaux-Talence Arts and Crafts campus, bringing together no less than 77 activities: between workshops, conferences, cyber security, and military equipment, including an impressive Griffon vehicle arriving directly from the 126th infantry regiment of Brive-la-Gaillarde.
“Orion Juvenile is part of a larger ecosystem called Orion 2026, an exercise organized every three years and which takes place in each defense area,” recalls General Stéphane Groën, the general officer of the Southwest defense and security zone. A large military action involving maneuvers in “15 departments, including French Guiana.” During its first phase, which began in February, it mobilized 12,500 French soldiers and around twenty partner nations. The third phase will end in late April with actions, notably in Gironde, at Saint-Maixant.
“A critical spirit”
But how to prepare for war when you are still a middle school student or barely legal? “I asked them to be actors in this global approach as European, committed, and French citizens,” mentions General Stéphane Groën. “I also asked them to be mentally strong, because what makes the strength of a society is its resilience.” With the Ukrainian case as an example. “Moreover, I set them a goal: to continue developing their knowledge, to work well at school, and to keep a critical spirit in order to deal with disinformation. Some of our competitors, through social networks, try to weaken us,” insists the general who is also an air corps general.
Three hours after its launch, Orion Juvenile had 1,400 participants. A few minutes before the ration, well-deserved after an improvised obstacle course, what do these students think? Would they be willing to do national service? “If we have to go there, serve the country in which we grew up, yes we will go,” proclaim in unison Viktor Terrou and Thomas Jaouen, respectively 19 and 18 years old and both in their first year of bachelor’s degree at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’Arts et Métiers.
