PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron confirmed on Sunday plans to build a new, larger and more modern aircraft carrier to replace the ageing Charles de Gaulle carrier and boost France’s capacity as a maritime power.
Macron, who originally touted the plans in 2020, was speaking to troops based at a French military base in Abu Dhabi located near the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial chokepoint for global oil flows.
“The decision to launch this vast programme was taken this week,” Macron said, adding that the project would boost France’s industrial base, in particular small and medium-sized businesses.
“In line with the last two military programming laws, and after a thorough and comprehensive review, I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier,” Macron said, speaking during a visit to French troops in the United Arab Emirates.
“In an age of predators, we must be strong in order to be feared,” Macron said.
France first launched studies into replacing the Charles de Gaulle in 2018, with preliminary work beginning two years later.
The announcement of the official start of construction comes despite a budgetary deadlock gripping the European Union’s second-largest economy.
Criticism in France, including from military chief General Fabien Mandon, had focused on whether other more pressing areas should be prioritised amid fears of a European war with Russia.
This official launch will make it possible to sign all of the contracts necessary for the project, Macron’s office said.
Also nuclear-powered, the new carrier will be far larger than the current flagship.
It will displace nearly 80,000 tons and be around 310 metres long, compared with 42,000 tons and 261 metres for the Charles de Gaulle.
With a crew of 2,000, it will be able to hold 30 fighter jets.
While the future ship will still be dwarfed by the 11 vast supercarriers of the US Navy, which each displace more than 100,000 tons, only China and Britain’s Royal Navy currently operate similarly sized carriers, all of which are conventionally powered.
Army Minister Catherine Vautrin said on X that the new vessel would enter service in 2038, around the time that the Charles de Gaulle is expected to be retired.
That vessel entered service in 2001, some 15 years after it was commissioned.
Some French lawmakers from the centre and the moderate left have recently suggested that the project to build a new aircraft carrier be postponed due to France’s strained state finances.
Macron was speaking during a visit to the UAE to celebrate Christmas with French troops and to discuss bilateral ties with the Gulf state, with Paris hoping for more cooperation in its fight against drug trafficking.
Macron met Emirati President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday, with the French leader posting on X that they had discussed how to strengthen their strategic partnership, particularly for “stability in the Middle East”.
The UAE is a major buyer of French military hardware and Paris is reportedly considering turning to Abu Dhabi to rescue its troubled future fighter jet programme with Germany on the brink of pulling out.
The French president traditionally celebrates the end-of-year holidays with troops deployed abroad, of whom there are more than 900 in the UAE.
Some of their work focuses on the war against drug trafficking, with France hoping for more Emirati cooperation.
Major traffickers are believed to have found refuge in the UAE, in Dubai in particular, and some are thought to have built up substantial real estate portfolios there.
The French delegation includes Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, who last month called on the UAE to extradite some 15 suspected drug traffickers wanted by France.
France remains one of Europe’s leading military powers and is one of only five official nuclear-armed countries. –Agencies
