On October 12, the Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, was invited to two separate parliamentary hearings – one in the Senate, the other in the National Assembly – to discuss the case of Canberra’s cancellation of the order. 12 Shortfin Barracuda-type submarines from Naval Group as well as the creation of the “AUKUS” alliance, formed by Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
As one might expect, the minister did not escape the questions of certain parliamentarians on French strategy in the Indo-Pacific, and in particular on the military means deployed there, these implying, in hollow , that their weakness could explain Canberra’s decision to forge an alliance with London and Washington. Other questions focused on France’s attitude towards China. Attitude which would have thus precipitated Australia in the partnership “AUKUS”.
In her responses, Ms. Parly, on the contrary, maintained that the commitment of French forces in the Indo-Pacific remained important, taking the example of the Marianne mission, in which the nuclear submarine d. ‘attack [SNA] Emerald and the Metropolitan Support and Assistance Building [BSAM] Seine. Or by insisting on the military device deployed in the region [mais dont les capacités sont insuffisantes, notamment pour dans le domaine de la lutte anti-sous-marine, ndlr].
“If we have a powerful military tool at the scale of a country such as France, it is to possibly have to use it if it is necessary but also to be able to give credibility to the diplomacy that we lead. », The Minister pointed out to the deputies of the Defense and Foreign Affairs committees. “In other words,” she continued, “I am not convinced that we should place ourselves in the perspective of having to confront China militarily”, contrary to what the “AUKUS” partnership implies.
“On the other hand, then argued Ms. Parly, what we advocate is respect for fundamental principles such as […] freedom of navigation. And it is for this reason that we are planning naval resources, in particular in the China Sea ”. It is a question, she insisted, “of expressing in a peaceful way that we have the right to circulate freely in these waters”.
The minister obviously made the same speech to senators a few hours earlier. However, in a response to a question about tensions between Taipei and Beijing, which are probably at their highest level in more than 25 years, Ms Parly hinted that France was doing more than demonstrating its right to navigate the world. waters claimed by China.
Regarding Sino-Taiwanese tensions, “we demonstrate, including with the resources of the Navy, our attachment to international law and freedom of movement,” Ms. Parly recalled.
Thus, in April 2019, the Vendémiaire surveillance frigate had passed through the Strait of Formosa, considered to be a “preserve” by Beijing. And the Chinese reaction was not made to wait: the French ship was invited to leave by the Chinese naval forces and China addressed a “solemn protest” to France, accusing it of a “violation” of its territorial waters.
The surveillance frigates of the French Navy, of which the first of the six models was put into service almost thirty years ago, are not so-called “first rank” ships. Deprived of anti-submarine warfare resources, their military capabilities are limited … But the transit of one of them in the Strait of Formosa was enough to provoke Beijing’s ire … So what if that had been a vessel designed to collect electromagnetic intelligence [ROEM], like Dupuy de Lôme?
And yet, he recently ventured into the Strait of Formosa. This is indeed what Ms. Parly told senators, about the sending of naval “means” in the waters claimed by Beijing, in particular those surrounding Taiwan. “This has resulted in the presence of French Navy vessels such as the Dupuy de Lôme in the Strait of Formosa,” she revealed.
As a reminder, the Dupuy de Lôme is an “experimentation building” of 3,600 tonnes [pour une longueur de 101,75 m et une largeur de 15,85m] implemented by the French Navy for the benefit of the Military Intelligence Directorate [DRM]. If his weaponry is anecdotal [deux mitrailleuses de 12,7 mm], on the other hand, its means of interception and listening are not …
The minister did not specify the date of the mission carried out by the Dupuy de Lôme. However, it is known that, last July, this ship sailed in the Sea of Japan to go to the Tatar Strait, between mainland Russia and the island of Sakhalin. This has also earned him to be closely watched by the Russian forces present in the area.
A month later, Taiwanese media claimed that a French vessel was in the Strait of Formosa, precisely off the township of Fangyuan. The information was first confirmed by a source from the Taiwanese Coast Guard, then later denied.
With regard to the data of the Automatic Identification System [AIS], if they did indeed indicate the presence of a French Navy vessel between China and Taiwan, the MMSI identification number assigned to it did not correspond to any French vessel likely to be in the region.
Furthermore, Ms. Parly spoke of “presence” and not of “transit”. Which may mean that the Dupuy de Lôme lingered in the Strait of Formosa … What is more, and while the passage of US Navy ships is now regular, the dispatch of a “spy ship”. ”In this area is rather singular, even if the American“ destroyers ”have sensors allowing them to collect intelligence.
In any case, the Chinese diplomatic services have not a priori noted the confidence made by Ms. Parly to the senators. And she did not repeat it to the deputies during her second hearing of the day organized on the same theme.
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