French Navy press release – Translated by Naval News
A total of thirteen vessels took part in this multinational maritime safety training in the major straits of Malacca, Sunda and Lombok, which link the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Every day, a third of the world’s trade passes through these passages, which are exposed to numerous risks of human and natural origin: illegal immigration, illicit trafficking, earthquakes, tsunamis and maritime incidents that can cause environmental damage.
In the Strait of Malacca, the Royal Malaysian Navy corvette FFG Lekir and training ship Gagah Samudera, as well as the Singaporean littoral mission vessel Independence, carried out boarding exercises with the CSG air defense frigate.
In the approaches to Sunda strait, the British (HMS Spey), Canadian (HMCS Ottawa), Indian (INS Mumbaï) and CSG’s multi-mission frigates carried out several cross-visits to exchange information on their respective maritime security procedures. They then carried out on boarding exercises, as well as landing and take-off training with their onboard helicopter.
To complete the deployment, Indian Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and two French Atlantique 2s (ATL2s) based on the Indonesian island of Java joined LA PEROUSE 25. Together they carried out surveillance flights, the ATL2s integrating Indonesian observers on a daily basis.
Finally, in the final phase of the exercise, Australia joined in with the destroyer HMAS Hobart in front of the Lombok Strait. For the first time, CSG’s Jacques Chevallier replenishment tanker supplied an Australian vessel.
LA PEROUSE 25 ended with a tactical evolution exercise between the air defense frigate and the Indonesian frigate Raden Eddy Martadinata.
Throughout the exercise, a crisis management group based at the French Embassy in Jakarta and comprising officers from the CSG staff ran the scenario using the IORIS crisis communication and coordination system. Each maritime and air unit was connected to this software to share live information concerning the straits.
LA PEROUSE 25 enabled the participating navies to significantly increase their interoperability and common knowledge in a strategic zone for maritime trade on a global scale.
With this multi-interaction, multi-objective mission, the CSG demonstrates that it is a tool for naval superiority, power projection and autonomous situation assessment, capable of operating in a complex strategic environment. The deployment of this military capability underlines France’s commitment to freedom of action and freedom of movement by sea and air on all the world’s oceans and seas.
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Naval News comments
Following this exercise, the aicraft carrier Charles de Gaulle port call in Lombok with some escort ships while the air-defense destroyer Forbin, and the FREMMs Provence and Alsace stopped in Bali.
Taking advantage of this unprecedented stopover of the CSG in Indonesia and the 75th anniversary of French-Indonesian bilateral partnership, the French MoD visited the French sailors and met his new Indonesian counterpart and other authorities in Lombok to stress the importance of the South East Asian region, and more generally of the Indo-Pacific.
During his speech, as already reported by Naval News, he also stated that 2025 will be the official order of the future aircraft carrier (PANG) meant to replace the Charles de Gaulle as mentionned in a French MoD press release: “He recalled the central role played by the CSG in our defence, which will be reflected in 2025 by the first orders for the construction of the future new-generation aircraft carrier (PANG) to take over from the Charles de Gaulle.” However, this statement remains theoretical. Although the French Senate recently voted in favor of increasing the French defence budget, the vote of the MPs chamber is still awaited.
On February 3rd. two of the vessels (Forbin and Provence) calling at Bali will sail towards Manilla in the Philippines, while the FREMM Alsace will head directly for Okinawa for an official visit prior to a new exercise – “Pacific Steller” – that will bring together the French CSG with Australian, Canadian, Japanese and US vessels.
