French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that France planned to build a new aircraft carrier.
The ship will replace the Charles de Gaulle carrier, which is expected to be retired by 2038.
It comes as European countries aim to strengthen their forces in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Paris tries to boost its projection as a maritime power.
What do we know about France’s PANG programme?
The program, called New Generation Aircraft Carrier (PANG), is estimated to cost approximately €10.25 billion ($12 billion).
The ship will be capable of carrying approximately 30 fighter jets and 2,000 crew members and is planned to stand 310 meters (1,007 ft) long and 85 meters wide, making it much larger than the Charles de Gaulle carriers.
Macron made the announcement at a French military base in Abu Dhabi, near the Strait of Hormuz in the United Arab Emirates.
The UAE is a major buyer of French military hardware and the nearby Strait of Hormuz is a vital waterway for global energy supplies.
“In times of aggression, we must be stronger than afraid. I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier,” Macron said.
“The decision to launch this massive program was taken this week,” he said.
France hails ‘centrepiece’ of sea power projection
Army Minister Catherine Vautrin said in a post on Twitter that the ship would be the “centerpiece” of the French military.
“The future centerpiece of our armed forces, it will ensure power launch from the high seas, with commissioning planned for 2038,” he said.
France is the only EU member state armed with nuclear weapons and is the only country other than the US to operate a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
Other European countries that operate aircraft carriers are the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Russia, and Turkey.
Edited by: Dmytro Lyubenko