Commandement des opérations spéciales
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The Commandement des opérations spéciales (COS) (Eng. “High Command for Special Operations ”) is a cross- armed forces main command that leads all special units of the French military and other organizations subordinate to it.
The COS was set up on June 24, 1992 as a result of the experience of the Second Gulf War , in order to reduce friction losses and competitive thinking among the armed forces.
Since 2006 the headquarters of the General Staff has been located at the Villacoublay military airfield, southwest of Paris.
assignment
In addition to the operational management of special forces, the COS is also responsible for developing training guidelines, operational doctrines and procurement plans for these units. It ensures the coordination of the individual special operations units, their training and provision and advises the French general staff on questions of special operation combat management and planning.
organization
The COS is divided into two areas. The first includes the special forces permanently subordinate to the high command, the second those subordinate to him temporarily. Depending on the situation, the COS can request any special unit belonging to the military, regardless of the armed forces, and integrate itself temporarily.
Currently, around 3,019 men are constantly subordinate to the COS (1817 of the Army and 366 of the Air Force , 754 of the Navy and 82 of the COS staff).