PH, French navies hold subject matter exchange on submarines
MANILA, Philippines — In the next four days, some members of the Philippine Navy will learn about the best practices on submarine warfare from French Navy experts.
The subject matter exchange is in preparation for the Philippine Navy’s future submarine acquisition, naval public affairs chief Lcmdr. Ma. Christina Roxas said in a statement.
The exchange of the two navies kicked off Monday at the Philippine Navy headquarters in Manila. The French delegation will also visit the Philippine Fleet, Naval Installation Command, Naval Sea Systems Command, and Naval Information and Technology Center in the coming days.
The contingent was led by Col. Emmanuel Peltriaux, the non-resident attaché to the Philippines. He was joined by Cmdr. Jean-Christophe Marie and Cmdr. Jeremy Bachelier, both specialists in French Submarine Forces and Surface Forces.
The training was an outcome of the bilateral talks between Navy chief Vice Adm. Robert Empedrad and his French counterpart Adm. Christophe Prazuck during the EURONAVAL 2018 Exhibition held in Paris, France last October.
The French Navy committed to send a team of subject matter experts from different warfare fields to Manila who could contribute to the submarine warfare capability development program of the Philippine Navy, Roxas said.
Assistant chief of naval staff for Plans and Programs, N5, Capt. Juario Marayag expressed their gratitude to the commitment of the French Armed Forces to assist the Navy’s modernization program through education and training.
Col. Peltriaux said that this engagement is very important as it enhances and promotes bilateral cooperation among two countries, Roxas said.
The Scorpene diesel-electric submarine manufactured by French defense contractor Naval Group is one of the submarines being considered by the Philippine Navy as the source for its future submarine acquisition.
Last year, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana signed a non-binding defense cooperation agreement with his French counterpart Florence Parly in line with the potential submarine acquisition.
