The French aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle is preparing a new mission. The carrier group of which he is a part will soon set sail for a deployment of several months which will take it to the Pacific, the Ministry of the Armed Forces announced this Friday, November 8.
The mission called “Clemenceau 25” is due to begin in the coming weeks and aims to “promote a free, open and stable Indo-Pacific space with our regional partners within the framework of international law and to contribute to the protection of our populations and our interests”, according to Rear Admiral Jacques Mallard, commander of the carrier group.
This includes, in addition to the aircraft carrier and its more than 20 Rafale combat aircraft, a supply ship, several frigates and a nuclear attack submarine for its escort. It will be “regularly reinforced by foreign frigates or submarines”, he explained, citing “American, Greek, Portuguese, Italian, Moroccan, British, Australian, Canadian and Japanese combat vessels”.
Operations with the American 7th Fleet
After a transit in the Mediterranean, the carrier group “will contribute to national and European operations in the Red Sea”, according to him. The French Navy has been continuously deploying a frigate for several months as part of the European mission Aspides in order to secure the passage of commercial ships regularly targeted by missiles and drones launched by the Yemeni Houthi rebels, allies of Iran. The passage through the Red Sea responds more to a “convoy logic than to a logic of remaining in the area”, he clarified.
Because the carrier strike group must then go to the Indian Ocean where it will conduct the multinational exercise Lapérousethen to the Pacific for the exercise Pacific Steller with the Americans, Japanese, Canadians and Australians, on an unspecified date.
This exercise aims in particular to develop interoperability that “we have little opportunity to exercise” with the American VIIth Fleet, responsible for the Pacific Ocean. “Deploying a fairly substantial naval force in an area which, in the next ten years, will see more than 40% of world GDP transit, shows France’s interest in the area through the theme of maritime security, despite the remoteness”, estimated the rear admiral.
During its deployment, the naval strike group will also be equipped with “data centers” and will take on board data specialist reservists in order to “have the capacity to collect, exploit and share data in order to increase our analysis capacity” , according to him.