French Town Builds €3M Gendarmerie Barracks to Fight Andorra Smuggling

The French municipality of L'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre has launched a project to build new gendarmerie barracks aimed at ensuring a permanent military presence in the area to combat smuggling along the border with Andorra.

The initiative, estimated to cost €3 million, will include six housing units for officers from the mobile territorial brigade (BTMO) as well as adaptable office spaces. Mayor Arnaud Diaz has emphasised that the municipality cannot fund the project alone and insists that at least 60% must come from public sources. He has called on the French state, the Occitanie region, the Ariège department, and the inter-municipal authority to contribute, noting that the brigade serves the entire Haut-Ariège region.

The state has already provided a €50,000 grant towards the €80,000 land purchase. The prefecture has indicated further "significant" public support once a formal application is submitted.

This local effort aligns with a national plan announced by French President Emmanuel Macron to establish 239 new gendarmerie brigades. In the area, L'Hospitalet hosts the mobile territorial brigade, while a permanent one is planned for Mazères.

Opened in December 2024 with four officers, the L'Hospitalet brigade expanded to six over the summer of 2025 and is now fully operational. It focuses on checks and anti-smuggling operations along the RN20 road between Tarascon-sur-Ariège and the Andorran border. Official figures show more than 5,000 hours of service in 2025—double the previous year—demonstrating a strengthened presence.

For now, officers work from temporary town hall facilities and rented accommodation. The project is at a critical stage, needing to balance local goals with institutional backing and budget constraints.