Does Belgium hope France will grant it more significant economic and industrial benefits than those that were initially announced in 2018, when it ordered approximately 442 armored vehicles? This seemed to be the message that Belgium Prime Minister Bart De Wever conveyed to French President Emmanuel Macron, on a visit to Paris on Tuesday, April 29. According to De Wever, a member of the Flemish nationalist N-VA party, his visit was "crowned with success." Paris is ready, according to a source in his entourage, to make "efforts" to "rebalance the returns" from the deal, which was initially estimated as costing €1.6 billion – but which could prove much more costly.

In 2018, the Belgian government, then led by Charles Michel, a Francophone liberal, approved the so-called "CaMo" – for "Motorized Capacity" – deal, which provided for Belgium's acquisition of 60 Jaguar combat vehicles and 382 Griffon light armored vehicles, by 2028, from a consortium of defense companies including Nexter (now KNDS), Thales, and Arquus. This order was seen as the beginning of a "strategic partnership" between Paris and Brussels, and was meant to be followed by additional purchases (such as other Griffons, notably mortar-equipped versions, Caesar howitzer guns and Serval armored vehicles). France also aimed to supply its neighbor with anti-aircraft systems.

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