France may send Napoleon’s 126th Regiment to Ukraine, with a history against Russia

France may send Napoleon’s 126th Infantry Regiment, with history against Russia, to Ukraine. The white bison is its emblem and its motto is “Fier et vaillant” (“Proud and brave”).

According to information published in the French press, the 126th Infantry Regiment (126 Régiment d’Infanterie) has been actively preparing for several months to participate in an armed conflict, possibly for the one in Ukraine.

France may send Napoleon’s 126th Infantry Regiment, with history against Russia, to Ukraine

This regiment, which is based in the New Aquitaine region, in the city of Brive-la-Gaillarde, has 1,200 soldiers and is being supplemented with another 200 reservists, reports Le Monde.

It is considered one of the best combat units of the French army and is equipped with VBMR Griffon multi-role armored vehicles, which replaced the aging VAB in 2018.

“For several months, the soldiers at the Laporte barracks in Brive-la-Gaillarde have been preparing for the possibility of an intervention in Ukraine. Emmanuel Macron’s recent statements have certainly not disrupted the daily lives of these soldiers, but in their minds, the prospect of a front in the east has come considerably closer,” according to Le Monde.

No one wants to risk commenting on the statements of the President of the Republic, who on February 26 caused a stir among several allies by announcing that sending troops to Ukraine should not be ruled out.

For the servicemen of RI 126, the Ukrainian conflict is at best “a somewhat distant setting”, “a background”.

“The soldier always remains pragmatic, he only projects from objective to objective,” says the communications officer, even though, “like an elephant in the middle of the room,” this war is often there, in people’s heads and in classroom discussions.

The 126th Infantry Regiment was first created as an independent tactical unit in 1810 and participated in the invasion of Russia in 1812 in Napoleon’s army.

In 1813, the soldiers of the regiment who survived the confrontations with the Russian army were included in the 123rd Infantry Regiment.

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Since then, the 126th Regiment has been disbanded and recreated several times. It is part of the 9th Infantry Brigade, 1st Division “Troupe de marine” – a part of the French army designed to participate in combat operations outside Europe or for rapid deployment in distant theaters of war.

Ahead of the troop deployment, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu announced that Paris would soon be able to supply Kiev with 78 Caesar self-propelled howitzers and would increase its supply of shells to meet Ukraine’s urgent ammunition needs.

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Lecornu said France, Ukraine and Denmark had reached an agreement to finance the delivery of Caesar 155mm self-propelled howitzers, which would allow Paris to “deliver them quickly”.

He added that France aimed to supply Ukraine with 80,000 rounds of ammunition for its 155 mm guns this year, up from the 30,000 it has supplied since the start of the full-scale invasion.