Designated to serve in the Far East in January 1953, he was assigned to the 4th Colonial Artillery Regiment 4e RAC, then the North-West Operational Artillery Group (GONO), the designated name of the garrison of Dien Bien Phu.

Knight Order of the Order of the Légion d'honneur at 25, he became a military instructor at the infantry application school until September 1956, he was then assigned to the 3rd Colonial Parachute Regiment (3e RPC) in North Africa where he commanded a combat support company from 1958 until October 1959.

Following these engagements, his name often came up and was cited[1][2][3][4] when the torture practices were evoked during the Algerian war.

Promoted to colonel in 1974, then Général de brigade in 1979, he became Chief of Staff of the French Army in 1985, then Chef d'état-major des Armées in 1987 responsible for French forces during the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991.

In 1990, he was elevated to the dignity of Grand-Cross of the Légion d'honneur[5] and became Governor of Les Invalides in 1991, until 1996.