MANILA, Philippines — A group of French Air and Space Force aircraft will visit the Philippines for the first time, according to France’s top diplomat in the country.
“In a few days, the Pegase deployment of the French Air Force will stop over in Clark for the very first time,” French Ambassador Marie Fontanel said at a reception to celebrate France’s National Day last Sunday.
The Department of National Defense (DND) said that Fontanel also raised during a courtesy call on Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. last Thursday the forthcoming visit of a group of French Air and Space Force aircraft in the country, “a first in the history of Philippine-France defense relations.”
“During the stopover, bilateral activities are expected to help build the foundations of air-to-air cooperation between the two countries,” the DND said yesterday in a statement.
Fontanel introduced Captain Stéphan Litzler, the newly designated defense attaché of France in Manila, to Teodoro.
France’s assignment of a resident defense attaché to the Philippines comes after the visit to the country of French Minister for the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu in December last year.
During the visit, the Philippine and French defense ministers committed to strengthening the two countries’ bilateral defense relationship with the signing of a Letter of Intent.
Teodoro and Fontanel also discussed the latest incidents in the West Philippine Sea, where the Philippines continues to work on de-escalating tensions.
The DND chief highlighted the importance of holistic and long-term defense cooperation or partnerships in supporting overall efforts to build the Philippines’ credible deterrence.
The two officials also raised the potential of nuclear energy cooperation, developing closer ties with Pacific Island countries, the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Manila this October and the United Nations Ocean Conference in France in June next year.
Fontanel highlighted the achievements during the Bastille Day reception with the visit of French Minister of the Armed Forces and meeting with Teodoro, France’s first participation in the 2024 Balikatan exercise, port call of the French destroyer La Bretagne, the forthcoming Pegase deployment and the opening of the resident defense mission in Manila last month.