google translation of
Présidentielle : la marine fait pression pour un second porte-avions
:
"While the Charles-de-Gaulle is under construction until 2018, the navy is asking the candidates to commit to this investment estimated at 4.5 billion euros.
The tone has gone up a notch around North Korea, with Beijing warning of a new nuclear test and the imminent arrival in the Korean waters of the US aircraft carrier USS Carl-Vinson and its escort. This weekend is going to be played a lot of bluff, which worries all the staffs. On April 15, North Korea celebrates the 105th anniversary of the late founder Kim II-Sung and his leader Kim Jong-un threatened a sixth nuclear test. No one knows the outcome of this new confrontation, but experts point out once again that the sending of an aircraft carrier, a power tool, sets the bar high enough to support the Unilateral action guards issued by the President of the United States.
While the French aircraft carrier Charles-De-Gaulle is under construction, and therefore offside until 2018, the new French president will not be able to rely on this tool to make it heard, unlike François Hollande The French voice in global conflicts. An opportunity for the navy to put pressure on the candidates in favor of a second tricolor carrier to ensure "permanence at sea", arguing that an investment estimated at 4.5 billion euros can To be managed over time. Benoît Hamon and Marine Le Pen said yes. More cautious with public finances, Emmanuel Macron and François Fillon simply acknowledged that the question arose. Jean-Sylvestre Mongrenier, associate researcher of the institute and doctor of geopolitics of the French Institute of Geopolitics (Paris-VIII), in a note published this Friday by the Thomas More Institute, explains the arguments in favor of " A second aircraft carrier.
Why this advocacy for the rapid launch of a second carrier?
The carrier is an instrument of power and an exceptional means of action. This mobile and sovereign naval base gives the political power the capacity to act without depending on the diplomatic and logistical constraints that condition the use of armed force from facilities located in foreign territory. Its firepower can ensure "entry first" into a theater of operations, then reinforce the ground maneuver, without increasing the footprint on the ground. Moreover, the presence of a carrier group in a zone of the world makes it possible to display its political ambition and its resolve to play a decisive role within alliances and coalitions, to weigh in the great world politics.
Where is the emergency?
Design studies require two to four years. Thus, if the decision is taken in 2017, construction could start in 2022. The construction of an aircraft carrier lasts eight to ten years, so admission to active service would take place in 2030. The second option would be to Design and build the successor of Charles-de-Gaulle and his sister ship with a schedule similar to the previous scenario. The accounting reason will contrast the cost of such a project, but the argument does not hold. As estimated, the cost would be 4.5 billion euros, which amounts to 450 million euros for ten years, or 1.5% of the annual defense budget.
What do you think of the sending of the American aircraft carrier Carl-Vinson to North Korea?
The displacement of an American naval group to the Korean peninsula underlines the geopolitical importance of such a power instrument. This pressure is part of an overall strategy. The idea is to persuade popular China, the "godfather" of Pyongyang, that the United States is ready to act unilaterally, and thus "force" the negotiation. Moreover, we learned that Xi Jinping phoned Donald Trump to strengthen the coordination of their respective countries in this crisis. To be continued ... But the sending of the American aircraft carrier on zone appears as a strong and indispensable component of the maneuver of this crisis.
What can an aircraft carrier do in asymmetric conflicts, with suicide attacks? Is it not better to concentrate the means on the army?
During his last engagement (second half of 2016), Charles-De-Gaulle doubled the French contribution to the operation of the coalition against the Islamic state and, in two weeks, operated a "rocking" between the Mediterranean The Arabian-Persian Gulf. These operations are not subject to the same constraints as aircraft taking off from foreign bases. On the other hand, it would be wrong to think that counter-terrorism is a kind of "end of history". Emerging powers, such as China and India, and even Russia, equip themselves with aircraft carriers to challenge Western hegemony over the seas. The return to major inter-state conflicts is not excluded.
What is your assessment of François Hollande's use of Charles-De-Gaulle aircraft carrier?
The aircraft carrier is the military equipment that most often had the honors of the Head of State and his Minister of Defense. This illustrates the high political value of this building, which carries an ambition of power and allows France to count in the circle of the small number of nations holding naval capabilities. Operationally, after each attack committed on the national territory, the French naval group quickly set sail in order to carry the answer on the Syrian-Iraqi theater. The stakes of the carrier are the grandeur of France, a world-class nation, naval diplomacy and firepower, a guarantee of operational success. Eminently political, the question of the second aircraft carrier has its place in the French presidential debate."