On Wednesday, Emmanuel Macron visited the Naval Group construction site in Indre, where France's next aircraft carrier is taking shape. He left having announced its name: France Libre, after the World War II resistance movement that kept fighting when the rest of the country had stopped. The choice is not subtle, and it is not meant to be.
The ship is a serious piece of hardware. At 310 metres long, driven by two nuclear reactors and designed to carry both fighter jets and advanced drone technology, it will be the largest warship ever built in Europe. Construction is underway. Sea trials are expected in 2036, with the carrier becoming fully operational in 2038, when the Charles de Gaulle, France's current flagship, is due to retire after nearly four decades of service.
As reported by Reuters: "Our seas and oceans are new arenas of contemporary conflict. Recent days have confirmed this, and the future will confirm it further," says Emmanuel Macron, French President.
The programme carries a price tag of 10.2 billion euros, and the strategic context gives it weight beyond the numbers. With Donald Trump pushing NATO allies to take on more of their own defence burden, France is positioning itself as the backbone of European military capability. It is the only country in the EU with nuclear weapons, and one of just two in the world alongside the United States with a nuclear-powered carrier.
Washington operates eleven. China has three. Europe, for now, has France. And France is making sure that counts for something.