5-4-2024 (BANGKOK) In a display of strengthening ties between France and Thailand, the French frigate Vendémiaire docked at Bangkok Port on Monday, heralding a week-long series of joint military training exercises with the Royal Thai Navy (RTN).
The vessel’s arrival marks the resumption of the “ASIE” mission, a six-month-long endeavour organised in cooperation with Southeast Asian countries and members of the Indo-Pacific Maritime Coordination Centre. Disrupted for four years due to the pandemic, the mission now seeks to reinforce cooperation and relations with naval forces across the region.
Commander Sébastien Drouelle, addressing the press on Tuesday, underscored the mission’s significance, saying, “There have been several changes made to the ship as well as in the RTN, so we need to meet to synchronise our communications as well as participate in joint training on technical and navigation aspects.”
The Vendémiaire’s journey began in New Caledonia, a French territory in the southwest Pacific Ocean, before making stops in Indonesia and Timor-Leste. After concluding its engagements in Thailand on Saturday, the frigate will set sail for Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, and Australia, further strengthening maritime cooperation across the region.
Constructed in 1993 at the Saint-Nazaire shipyard, the Vendémiaire was designed for a multitude of tasks, including humanitarian service, surveillance missions, anti-smuggling operations, and the defence of French interests abroad, such as fisheries protection.
The frigate’s name pays homage to the month of the grape harvest on the 18th-century calendar during the French Revolution. Measuring 93.5 metres in length, 14 metres in width, and 36.4 metres in height, the vessel boasts rapid-firing cannons at the bow and carries a helicopter for short-distance surveillance and transportation missions. Its crew comprises 94 officers.
