The five-month Clemenceau 25 mission that ended in April 2025 reached areas of the Indo-Pacific where France’s carrier strike group (CSG) had not deployed since the 1960s. The mission is named for French statesman Georges Clemenceau, the nation’s leader during World War I and a renowned journalist, traveler and politician.
The region is home to more than 1.6 million French nationals and 75% of the nation’s exclusive economic zone. Clemenceau 25 is a key contribution to France’s Indo-Pacific strategy, which President Emmanuel Macron has advanced since 2018 and renewed during his May 2025 speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit, sponsored by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in Singapore.
Beginning in November 2024, the CSG, with the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle escorted by French Navy ships, sailed from Toulon in southern France to the Pacific Ocean.
The CSG also included the destroyer FS Forbin, frigates FS Provence and FS Alsace, and fleet oiler FS Jacques Chevallier, while its air wing had 22 Rafale Marine fighter jets, two E-2C Hawkeye early warning and control aircraft, two AS365 Dauphin helicopters, and an NH90 helicopter. Two region-based French Navy Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft, staged out of Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines and Singapore, supported the deployment. A nuclear-powered attack submarine was also part of the CSG.
This mission supported the French Indo-Pacific through participation in three strong pillars: exercises Varuna, La Pérouse and Pacific Steller.
Increasing interoperability
Varuna, named for the Hindu deity of the sky, oceans and water, is a bilateral exercise that strengthens interoperability between the French and Indian navies, which share values including a respect for international law. The 42nd iteration involved aircraft carriers — the FS Charles de Gaulle and the Indian Navy’s INS Vikrant — for the first time.
Their simultaneous presence allowed for scenarios that marked a significant advancement in aero-maritime operations. Deliveries to India of the Rafale Marine F5 fighter jets are projected to commence in around four years, sources said, and the Navy is expected to receive the first batch by late 2029, with the full fleet likely to be inducted by 2031. The addition of the Rafale Marine F5 fighter jet to the Indian Navy’s assets will enhance interoperability in operations, maintenance and logistics.
An artificial intelligence forum held in Paris in 2024, and attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, affirmed the nations’ ties beyond military convergence and capabilities.
Maritime security a shared concern
The CSG organized the fifth edition of exercise La Pérouse in January 2025 around the Indonesian archipelago, joining forces from Australia, Canada, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the United Kingdom and the United States. Thirteen ships participated in maritime security drills in the Lombok, Malacca and Sunda straits, which connect the Indian and Pacific oceans. One-third of global trade transits these strategic areas, which face threats such as illegal immigration, illicit trafficking, earthquakes, tsunamis and maritime accidents.
Uniting partners around a common command and control system has contributed to the exercise’s success. To build maritime capacity and domain awareness, participants used the European Union-made Indo-Pacific Regional Information Sharing software, giving maritime and air units a shared scenario in real time. Such technologies are critical for situational awareness.
La Pérouse allowed navies to significantly increase their interoperability and share knowledge in a vital area for global commerce and maritime traffic. The exercise was unprecedented in its geographical footprint and the diversity of participants promoting free movement of goods and people, contributing to the prosperity of all.
Strengthening collective capacity
The inaugural edition of Pacific Steller brought together the French, Japanese and U.S. navies, including an aircraft carrier from each nation, for 10 days of training in the Philippine Sea around Guam.
Drills included anti-surface, antiaircraft and anti-submarine combat, and demonstrated the forces’ determination to jointly operate in the region. The exercise strengthened the collective capacity to prevent crises, counter hybrid threats, ensure the preservation of shared spaces and promote a maritime domain based on international law.
Following Pacific Steller, the French CSG conducted bilateral cooperative engagements in the South China Sea, including with Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.
PETTY OFFICER 1ST CLASS PABLO CHAVEZ/U.S. NAVY
An affirmation of strategy
Clemenceau 25 illustrated France’s Indo-Pacific strategy and demonstrates the region’s importance, while significantly strengthening the partnership culture of the French Armed Forces. The deployment reinforced cooperation with partners including Australia, India, Japan and the U.S., as well as Association of Southeast Asian Nations member states, particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam, reaching unprecedented levels during Pacific Steller.
Sailing self-sufficiently with a complete escort including a supply ship, the deployment was a strategic signal in a region where the tyranny of distance poses a daily challenge.
For France, whose sovereign territories in the Indo-Pacific include French Polynesia, La Réunion, Mayotte, New Caledonia, and the Wallis and Fatuna islands, the Clemenceau 25 deployment was a strategic signal of the nation’s willingness to promote a multilateral approach and respect for international law.
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