The French Navy will send two of its warships to participate in the Balikatan 2026 annual military exercises to be held in the Philippines later this year.
The navy confirmed that the Mistral-class landing helicopter dock Dixmude and the La Fayette-class frigate Aconit will be deployed along with their complement of naval infantry troops, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles.
This will so far be the largest French military contingent to participate in the exercises, which have been held in the Philippines every year since 2001.
The French Navy's upcoming participation in Balikatan will be part of this year's Jeanne D’Arc training mission deployment, which will see the two ships sail for the Indo-Pacific. The five-month deployment will commence with the ships' departure from Toulon on February 17.
The French Navy Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group had participated in a maritime cooperative activity with the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the South China Sea early last year, though this was not part of the 2025 Balikatan exercises as those were held much later.
France's first participation in Balikatan was in 2024, when the Floreal-class frigate Vendemiaire conducted drills with US and Philippine Navy ships off Palawan province in April and May of that year.
