MANILA, Philippines — The flagship vessel of the French Navy is expected to arrive in the Philippines this year, France’s Ambassador to the Philippines Marie Fontanel said.
In a forum hosted by the French Embassy and think tank Stratbase ADR Institute on Thursday, January 23, Fontanel said the carrier strike group of the French Aircraft Carrier Charles de Gaulle will have a port visit in the country in February.
“I am today especially proud and honored to announce the upcoming visit of the French aircraft carrier group named Charles de Gaulle for the very first time to the Philippines in a month from now,” Fontanel said in a speech.
The French ambassador said the deployment of the carrier group is a part of the “Clemenceau 25” deployment.
“The 2025 deployment has been planned in line with this partnership-oriented approach, encompassing both long-standing and more recent collaborations,” Fontanel said.
“This deployment revolves around three key milestones, united by a common denominator: our ability to understand and acknowledge both what connects us and what differentiates us,” she added.
The Clemenceau 25 deployment is part of the French Navy’s “La Perouse” naval exercises, which involve the participation of navies from nine countries.
The following countries are part of the exercise:
- Canada
- United States
- Malaysia
- Indonesia
- India
- Australia
- United Kingdom
- Singapore
Aside from the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, the French carrier strike group will include the destroyer FS Forbin, frigates FS Provence and FS Alsace, the fleet oiler FS Jacques Chevallier and a nuclear-powered attack submarine.
It may be recalled that in October last year, the French Polynesia-based frigate Prairial made a port visit to Cebu.
Other Philippines-France collab
This is not the first time the French military has exercised with the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
In April 2024, during the Balikatan Exercises, the Philippine military conducted maritime exercises with the French and American militaries.
The Philippine and French air forces also conducted joint flight drills in July 2024 as part of the French Air Force’s “Pegase 24” mission in the Indo-Pacific region.
The joint flight drills included basic fighter maneuvers between the two air forces, with the Philippine Air Force’s FA-50 fighters and the French multi-role fighter aircraft Rafale taking part.