Netizen: There will be no more than three countries stronger than France. What is the national strength of France?

Generally speaking, as long as France is mentioned, many people will probably scoff. After all, during World War II, France performed badly. /kloc-in the summer of 0/940, Germany launched a "white lightning" offensive to attack western European countries. Under the torrent of German steel, many low-lying countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg quickly fell.

Of course, these countries are just small players and don't have much strength. It is normal that they can't stop the Germans. In western Europe at that time, France was the absolute overlord. As long as France does not fall, Germany can't do anything about Western Europe. So, what the Germans have to do next is to eat France. However, this is not easy. After all, France is an old-fashioned power, claiming to have the strongest army in Europe, and its paper strength is not lost to Germany. In addition, with the support of Britain and the solid maginot line, France is fully capable of fighting the Germans in World War I. ..

In the eyes of most people at that time, the battle between France and Germany was destined to be a close battle, and the two sides would fight very anxiously, just like World War I, knocking down a generation. Even if Germany can win in the end, it must be a disastrous victory.

To everyone's surprise, however, the Germans cleverly bypassed maginot line and caught the French off guard. From Ardennes to Dunkirk, the Germans went deep into France, and hundreds of thousands of British and French troops were almost driven to the sea to feed the fish. After losing the solid barrier of maginot line, the French army has no danger to defend. German armored forces galloped on French soil, marching triumphantly all the way to Paris. In order to continue the glorious tradition that "no one can occupy Paris before France surrenders", the French chose to surrender in the city.

In the end, France, with the strongest army in Europe, surrendered in only 39 days under the lightning attack of the German army. It was the surrender of France at the speed of light in World War II that completely made it a joke in the eyes of future generations, and even made many people have the stereotype that "France can't do it".

However, this is only an embarrassing experience in French history, which does not mean that France is really going to die. After all, everyone has a black history, not just France. London in England was burned, the White House in America was burned, and our Yuanmingyuan was also burned. Thirty years east of the river and thirty years west of the river, France didn't work before, and now it can't prove that it doesn't work.

In fact, France is very fierce at present, especially in the military field. Among European countries, it is estimated that only Russia can beat it. As for the roles of Britain and Germany, this is not enough. It is no exaggeration to say that if France hits Germany again now, Berlin will be pushed in a month.

At present, France has a standing army of over 340,000 people. If you count the reserve forces, the total strength is close to 500 thousand. Compared with China and Russia, a multimillion-dollar behemoth, this power is naturally not enough. But in the world, it has been considerable, especially in Europe.

You know, Britain and Germany, both troika countries, have less than 200,000 active military forces, which is far from France. Of course, under the modern war system, fighting does not depend on many people, but the level of equipment is also very important.

However, the equipment level of the French army is not bad. For example, the French army was equipped with more than 1000 tanks, including more than 500 Leclerc main battle tanks. The Air Force is equipped with more than 200 military aircraft of various types/KLOC-0, and has flown more than 500 sorties, mainly Mirage 2000 and rafale fighter. As for the navy, it has more than 180 ships, including a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, a dozen destroyers and a dozen nuclear submarines.

In terms of scale alone, France is almost the same as the army. As for the air force and navy, it is very impressive. Germany next door can't even catch up with half of France. More importantly, the French army's equipment is not only considerable in quantity, but also world-class in quality. For example, Leclerc's main battle tank was once the only fourth-generation tank in the world.

Although it is not so leading at present, it is still a first-class level. Another example is rafale fighter of the Air Force, which is known as the fourth generation aircraft with the strongest comprehensive performance. At present, among the fourth-generation machines in various countries, it is definitely not at a disadvantage. As for the navy, it's even worse. The aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is the only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier outside the United States. In addition, such as Northwest Wind amphibious assault ship and Triumph-class nuclear submarines are all star products in the industry.

It is worth mentioning that these main battle equipment are basically from France's own factories. This means that France has an independent and complete military industry system. This is a great supplement to military power. After all, buying in buy buy is better than making it yourself. If people choke you during the war and cut off the road of arms import, wouldn't it be impossible to fight? Argentina went to war with Britain, and they lost, largely because Britain cut off Argentina's arms import channels.

Finally, France, which has nuclear weapons and strong carrying capacity. If nothing else, a Triumph-class ballistic missile nuclear submarine is enough to shock all opponents. Even if the United States and Russia exist, we must weigh them. As for a country that does not have nuclear weapons or lacks strategic delivery capabilities, it is completely insignificant because it is not an opponent of the same level. As a result, there are not many countries in the world that can confront France, and you can count them with one hand.

The measure of a country's strength is not only its military strength, but also its economic level. After all, the economy is the foundation. Without money, nothing can be done. However, the economic level of France is not bad. After all, people are developed countries. At present, France is the sixth largest economy in the world, with a total GDP of $2.78 trillion in 20 19, which plays an important role in Europe and even the world economy.

More importantly, as a developed country, France has a relatively stable economic structure, a sound economic system and developed industries. For example, in industry, France is a serious industrial power with strong competitiveness in many fields. Like machinery manufacturing, nuclear energy application, aerospace and so on, France is at the forefront of the world.

For example, France has Airbus, which is the second largest aircraft manufacturer in the world. Originally, there were only a few countries in the world that could build airplanes, and it is even more rare to become the second in the world. In addition, Dassault, one of the world's major military aircraft manufacturers, is also French. There is also Alstom, the world's top manufacturing giant, which is in the same file as the industry giants such as General Motors and Siemens.

In today's era, industry is still an important guarantee for a country's stable development. Compared with Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which rely on selling resources to achieve wealth freedom, it will undoubtedly take longer to develop industrial technology. After all, behind industrial construction is the support of scientific and technological strength. The developed industry in France marks the leading level of French science and technology.

This is obviously a huge plus item for France's comprehensive national strength. After all, science and technology are the primary productive forces. Without advanced technology, how can France maintain its own defense industrial system? Building aircraft carriers, fighter planes and nuclear submarines requires not only capital but also technology. Some things can't be bought with money. Just look at India.

Of course, from the superficial data alone, France's economic advantages are not outstanding. Even in Europe, it is impossible to be invincible. At least Germany is much better than France, and its GDP in 20 19 reached 3.85 trillion US dollars, making it the largest economy in Europe. However, France's victory lies in its complete system. Whether it is civil or national defense, France can be independent, and there are no restrictions on development in all aspects. But Germany is different. As a defeated country, many things can't be played.

France, like Britain, once had a large number of colonies around the world. Although these places became independent later, they were greatly influenced by France during the colonial period. They speak French and use French currency, so they have a natural affinity for France. France itself is the P5. With this historical origin, its influence in the international arena is still considerable.

Generally speaking, France is a country with very strong comprehensive strength, and it is in the forefront of the world in terms of economy, military and soft power. The most important thing is the military gap. After all, fist is the last word. France's current strong military strength is enough to make up for its economic gap with other countries. Countries like Japan and Germany can beat France economically, but they can't beat other countries.

If you want to give a ranking, I personally think France should rank fourth, second only to the Big Three. It is a well-deserved brother of Europe except Russia.