Free France | Pakistan

President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday announced that France’s next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will be called “France Libre” (Free France), as the country looks to reinforce its status as a major maritime power. Once completed, the warship, which is set to replace the country’s sole aircraft carrier — the Charles de Gaulle — and due to enter service in 2038, will be the largest warship ever built in Europe. Macron said the vessel was being named after the French Resistance movement that General de Gaulle led against the Nazi occupation of France during World War II. “I wanted our future aircraft carrier to follow in the footsteps of General de Gaulle. His life, his destiny,” Macron said at a shipyard in the western town of Indret, near Nantes, where the vessel’s two nuclear reactors will be built. “Our new aircraft carrier will be named France Libre,” he added. “This name honours the memory of the men and women who stood up against barbarity.” Macron in December announced the start of construction of th...