With the new aircraft carrier, France seeks to strengthen military ties with the US

“It is a battleship, a symbol of power, a testament to our capacity for action,” French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly said on Twitter..

“It is the voice of France in all the waters of the planet.”

Macron says the U.S. will only respect European allies if it strengthens its military. The new carrier, scheduled for 2038, affirms “France’s willingness to preserve its strategic autonomy,” Macron said in a Dec. 8 speech announcing the new carrier from a nuclear component maker.

The rulers of the waves

France has announced that a new aircraft carrier will replace the Charles de Gaulle in 2038. These are the countries with the largest aircraft carriers.

Some European officials, including Germany’s defense minister, have expressed suspicion of Macron’s promotion of European power, noting that Europe cannot be defended without the US.

Still, officials and analysts say the French focus on capabilities and actions is appreciated in Washington, even if Macron’s comment last year that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization experiences a “brain death.” caused consternation.

“There are very few nations in the world that have this capacity to project power,” retired U.S. administrator James Foggo said of the planned carrier. “France has everything we have, but on a smaller scale. They are a very valuable partner for us ”.

President-elect Joe Biden says he wants to “deepen and revitalize” relations with European allies, who suffered trade measures and hectorings by President Trump over issues such as weak military spending. Last month, in a call with NATO Secretary-General Biden, he said he wanted to work with allies “to ensure that NATO has the strategic direction and capabilities to strengthen deterrence and counter new threats.” and emerging, ”his transition team said.

In Germany, Europe’s largest economy and a country reluctant to use force because of its history, plans to increase military spending this month suffered a setback. The Social Democratic Party, the minor partner in the ruling coalition, is blocking the country’s army from acquiring weapons for drones.

Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, who supports drone weapons, told parliament that German soldiers in Afghanistan’s Kunduz province had told her how, during a rocket attack, an unarmed drone signaled the firing position, but they had to go down and wait for US support.

“In recent days I have heard a lot about Europe’s strategic autonomy … that needs to be debated and negotiated with Americans alike,” he said on December 9th. “The German army soldiers in Kunduz lying on the ground staring at the sky to see when American air support would finally arrive, did not have the feeling that we could do the same in America.”

The French relationship with the US has been close, but sometimes stormy since the treaty of 1778 which helped defeat the British. France withdrew from NATO’s integrated military command in 1966 and opposed the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. But France returned to NATO military structures in 2009 and the relationship has narrowed in recent years.

In recent years, the U.S. has pressured allies to do more for European security, as Washington’s focus has been on China. This year, France will be one of only 10 NATO members, including the United States, to exceed the alliance’s 2% gross domestic product spending target. The French government plans to increase spending by 4.5% next year. France has led efforts in the Sahel region of Africa to fight Islamist militants, with the support of US intelligence and logistics.

“France’s robust stance coincides with the American recognition that it cannot always be at the forefront and wants the Allies to share the burden,” said Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, director of the Paris office of the German Marshall Fund of States Units. tank. “France and the United States have the will to project a power that is not shared with all European countries.”

The Charles de Gaulle, which was commissioned in 2001, has been a symbol of close cooperation with the United States, especially in the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. In late 2015, Paris sent its flagship to lead the U.S. naval task force that countered the terrorist organization, the first time a foreign ship had played that role. On his return to the region the following year, the adm. Retired Foggo, then commander of the sixth U.S. fleet based in Naples, Italy, remembers being on the deck of the ship while French-made Rafale warplanes roared to attack Islamic State targets.

“It’s very important for the alliance and for France,” the adm said. Retired Foggo, now Distinguished Fellow of the Center for European Policy Analysis.

The Charles de Gaulle uses a similar catapult system to launch aircraft as American companies do, meaning their fighters can operate from the decks of others. When the Charles de Gaulle was in maintenance in 2018, French pilots were training at the George HW Bush Company. In March, French and American fighters switched decks between Dwight D. Eisenhower and Charles de Gaulle during training in the Mediterranean.

The new French aircraft carrier, still unnamed, will be significantly larger than its predecessor. Stretching 300 meters or 984 feet, it will carry 30 fighter jets, whether Rafale aircraft or their successors, currently in joint development by France, Germany and Spain. The projected weight of 75,000 metric tons is heavier than any active carrier, except for the largest ship in the United States, the Gerald R. Ford. It will be equipped with a San Diego-based General Atomics electromagnetic launch system, meaning it will be able to handle American fighters in the same way as its predecessor. Like Charles de Gaulle and the U.S. carriers, the new ship will have nuclear power, decreasing its dependence on visits to the port for fuel.

Write to James Marson to [email protected]