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France Dispatches Aircraft Carrier Charles de Gaulle to Mediterranean
(MENAFN) France's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is en route to the Mediterranean, but its mission stops short of securing the vital Strait of Hormuz, Defense Minister Catherine Vautrin confirmed Thursday, as the Middle East slides deeper into crisis.
Speaking to a radio station, Vautrin said the carrier is on track to reach the Mediterranean by the close of this week or the opening of the next. She was emphatic that the deployment carries no mandate to patrol the Hormuz strait — a chokepoint through which a significant share of the world's oil supply flows — and is instead focused on bolstering stability across the Mediterranean theater.
Vautrin disclosed that two French military installations in the region sustained hits during recent strikes but continue to function. In a further sign of Paris hardening its regional posture in the wake of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the retaliatory volleys that followed, France has rushed six additional Rafale fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates within the past several hours, according to a French broadcaster.
Despite the reinforcements, Vautrin shut the door on any ground troop deployments for now, insisting France's stance remains squarely defensive.
On the question of citizen safety, she said no military evacuation assets have been mobilized, pointing out that commercial aviation routes out of the region remain open.
"The reality is that France is in a strictly defensive position; we have 400,000 people living in the Persian Gulf," Vautrin said.
The broader conflict continues to rage. A large-scale U.S. and Israeli offensive against Iran — now in its sixth day since launching Saturday — has killed 926 people, among them Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and senior military commanders. Tehran has answered with waves of drone and missile attacks directed at Israel and at Gulf states hosting American military assets.
Speaking to a radio station, Vautrin said the carrier is on track to reach the Mediterranean by the close of this week or the opening of the next. She was emphatic that the deployment carries no mandate to patrol the Hormuz strait — a chokepoint through which a significant share of the world's oil supply flows — and is instead focused on bolstering stability across the Mediterranean theater.
Vautrin disclosed that two French military installations in the region sustained hits during recent strikes but continue to function. In a further sign of Paris hardening its regional posture in the wake of U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran and the retaliatory volleys that followed, France has rushed six additional Rafale fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates within the past several hours, according to a French broadcaster.
Despite the reinforcements, Vautrin shut the door on any ground troop deployments for now, insisting France's stance remains squarely defensive.
On the question of citizen safety, she said no military evacuation assets have been mobilized, pointing out that commercial aviation routes out of the region remain open.
"The reality is that France is in a strictly defensive position; we have 400,000 people living in the Persian Gulf," Vautrin said.
The broader conflict continues to rage. A large-scale U.S. and Israeli offensive against Iran — now in its sixth day since launching Saturday — has killed 926 people, among them Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and senior military commanders. Tehran has answered with waves of drone and missile attacks directed at Israel and at Gulf states hosting American military assets.
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