Historically speaking, especially in times of need, carmakers have always been involved in the defense industry. Because the times we now live in are a tad quieter than they used to be (yes, despite the wars raging in Ukraine, Iran, and elsewhere), we don't see carmakers, especially the European ones, as involved as they used to be with the military. That's why an announcement made by French carmaker Renault earlier this month came a bit as a surprise.

      

For no apparent reason, Renault announced at the beginning of this month a tie-up with Belgian defense contractor and mechanical engineering firm John Cockerill for the creation of something called the Forefront concept.