Once again, Réunion Island is serving as the backdrop for a show of force by the French state. On Monday 15 and Tuesday 16 December, warplanes – Mirage 2000-5, Mirage 2000-D, MRTT Phénix and CASA – will criss-cross the skies above Réunion as part of the SAWABI 3 exercise, launched from the French base in Djibouti. Officially, the aim is to ‘consolidate France’s position’ in the Indian Ocean. In reality, it is yet another episode of wasteful spending of public money and contempt for the (…)