March 5, 2025
SINGAPORE – It is 261m long, displaces 42,500 tonnes when fully loaded, carries almost 30 aircraft on board and has a bakery that can whip up 2,000 baguettes a day. And it is now in Singapore.
“It” is the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which is docked at RSS Singapura – Changi Naval Base together with the frigates Alsace and Forbin as part of the French Navy’s Mission Clemenceau 25, a five-month deployment to this region that began in December 2024 and will end in April 2025.
The vessels arrived in Singapore on March 4. The previous call by a French carrier strike group in Singapore was in 2019.
On board the Charles de Gaulle are 22 Rafale combat aircraft, two E-2C Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft and three helicopters.
It also has a hospital with more than 20 doctors and other medical workers among its crew of 1,900 personnel. The self-contained ship has six dining rooms, entertainment and exercise spaces, and bakeries, among its amenities.
Also in the French Navy’s deployment are replenishment ship Jacques Chevallier and a pair of Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft, all of which are at other bases in Singapore for stopovers.
The French embassy said in a Feb 17 statement that Mission Clemenceau 25 demonstrates France’s commitment to the preservation of common good, free access to common spaces, respect for international law and opposition to any coercive action.
During the deployment, French ships have taken part in several bilateral and multilateral exercises with regional military, including the La Perouse 25 exercise in the Malacca, Sunda and Lombok straits.
The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) took part in this event, which also involved Australia, India, Malaysia, Britain and the United States.
Rear-Admiral Jacques Mallard, the commander of the French carrier strike group, said at a press conference on board the aircraft carrier on March 4 that a training activity involving the RSN’s Littoral Mission Vessel RSS Independence and a French frigate was a highlight of the deployment.
French Ambassador to Singapore Stephen Marchisio, who was also at the press conference, said that in addition to its territories in the South Pacific, his country also has significant trade and other interests in the region, citing as an example the more than 1,000 French companies operating in Singapore alone.
He also touched on the military ties between Singapore and France, noting that Singapore has regularly supported French military deployments to the region.
“Singapore stands as one of the most reliable and trustworthy partners for us (in the region),” he said.
He added that the deployment was a clear signal of the commitment of France and Europe to the Indo-Pacific, and that the region’s opportunities can be realised only by cooperation among countries with interests in the region.
The French ships carried out an exercise with the aircraft and helicopter carriers of the US and Japan in February, codenamed Pacific Steller, as well as exercise Varuna with India during the deployment.
Singapore and France will mark 60 years of diplomatic relations in 2025, and French President Emmanuel Macron will be here to deliver the keynote speech at the Shangri-la Dialogue security conference, which begins on May 30.
- Mike Yeo is a correspondent at The Straits Times, where he covers mainly defence issues.