FRANCE   

Opérations Psychologiques

Late 2012 French PSYOPS underwent a huge transformation with the Groupement Operations Militaires d'Influence (GOMI) and the CIMIC Group

combining resources and coming under the control of a Center for Actions affecting or having impact on the the military environment.

Centre interarmées des actions sur l’environnement (CIAE)

The Joint Center for environmental actions was created on 1 July 2012 and installed at the old CIMIC unit in Lyon, France.

The CIAE was created from the Joint Civil-Military Group (GIACM) and the Joint Group of Military Influence Operations (GOMI).  These two units are the foundation of the CIAE. 

They were implemented by the Army in 2010 to conduct reconnaissance and contact with the human environment on external operational theaters. 

Eventually, by 2014, the CIAE will boast 170 specialists Army, Air Force, Navy and Police and will train personnel in civilian military missions and military influence operations.

The mission of the units of CIAE is to better understand and accept the action of French forces operating with local players and win their trust: direct assistance to people management, reconstruction projects, communication

actions and influence over the population, elites and local politicians, etc..  "To effectively carry out the mission, it is essential that the commander on the ground can provide information on the human environment in which it undertakes" 

says Colonel Renaud Ancelin. "The CIAE will optimize the expertise in this area so that our Forces have an increasingly detailed understanding of the environment in which they operate, (distinclty more complex environment."

Units seen 2014: section EO (Environnement Opérationnel) and le détachement des actions sur les perceptions et l'environnement opérationnel (APEO)

Groupement d'informations Operationnelle  - GIO The initial French PSYOPS Bureau logo circa 2008/2009	Groupement d'information Operationnelle - GIO   The French PSYOPS unit patch 2009

The French military underwent much change in the 20th Century, notwithstanding the impact of 2 World Wars played out on its territory by Germany!

After 1945 France created the following units:

• Military Information Service / Service des informations militaires - SIM
• Military Cinematographic Service - Service cinematograhiques des armees - SCA
• SIM became the SIMG
• SIMG becames SAPICA - Service d'action psychologique, dínformation et cinematographique des armees
• SCA absorbs into SAPICA
• SIECA is created 1961
• 1969 - SAPICA transforms itself into SIRPA (Service dínformation et de relations publiques des armees)
• ECA - (Etablissement cinematographique des armees) absorbs SIECA, which in turn becomes
• ECPA (Etablissement cinematographique et photgraphique des armees)
• SIRPA remains the number one internal public relations and military information courier.
• 1998 - in a reformation within the Department of Defence, the Gendarmerie and the French Armed Forces the DICoD is instituted.
• DICoD - Delegation a lÍnformation et a la Communication de la Defense
• 2000 saw the creation of ECPAD - Etablissement de communication et de production audiovisuelle de la defense within DICoD
• After the Iraq War, France realised the importanc eof PSYOPS, Information Warfare and promoted the idea of Operational Communication - Communication Operationnelle. 

4th Loudspeaker and Leaflet Company - Algeria HPT	4th Broadcasting and Production Company CDP
DICOD	ECPAD	ECPA

H.P.T. 4  =  Compagnie de Hauts Parleurs et Tracts

C.D.P. 4 =  Cie de Diffusion et Production