After Doha, in Qatar, the head of state went to the French aircraft carrier, in the Red Sea, for the traditional Christmas in the armies.
by Philippe Ricard (off Charm El-Cheikh (Egypt), Special Envoy)
“I am happy and proud to be among you”: the formulas are alike, but the glorious defeat of the French against the Argentines in the final of the World Cup of football seems very distant. After hastened to console the Blues with a lot of words, the day before in Doha, in Qatar, Emmanuel Macron visited, Monday, December 19, at the aircraft carriers Charles-de-Gaulle. The flagship of the French fleet is three hours away from the Qatari capital, in the Red Sea, off Charm El-Cheikh (Egypt).
The opportunity for the president to reconnect with what the Elysée calls “Christmas in the armed forces”. Tradition had been interrupted for two years by the Cavid-19 pandemic. But it becomes a must, a few days before the holidays, when the return of the war in Europe, since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, places the troops on the alert. Starting with those of Charles-de-Gaulle.
After the football fields, Emmanuel Macron therefore surveyed the passageways of the imposing nuclear propulsion building. He even offered himself a sequence worthy of Tom Cruise in Top Gun, dixit his entourage, to join, on the gigantic elevator of the Pont d’Envol, the hangar where the planes – about twenty bursts and two Hawkeye surveillance devices – are maintained and sheltered. “You are extraordinary French and French,” said Emmanuel Macron, in a rapid speech to the members of the crew, stressing the “report particular to the existence” of the forces gathered before him.
The 1,800 sailors, including sixty pilots, that the crew is about to spend the holidays at sea or in stopover, far from their families. “On a mission, you do not distinguish between staff and the professional,” observed the head of state, leaving a particular announcement, of the preservation of the purchasing power and the retreats of the military, here as elsewhere. He said he wanted to rely on these men and women to “strengthen the moral strength of the nation” before singing a Marseillaise.
“crowd bath”
The day before, the head of state had highlighted the qualities of the French team players to try to look like the country behind him, at a time when unions promise a great battle against the reform contested of pensions. “You have to know how to do the share of things,” he said, however, during a quick “crowd bath” with the troops, as if to rule out any prolonged disappointment after the disillusionment suffered by French footballers . Alongside the “Pacha” of Charles-de-Gaulle, Captain Sébastien Martinot, and the commander of the Aeronaval group, Admiral Christophe Cluzel, Mr. Macron wores above all, in the wake of the flagship of the tricolor fleet , to highlight France’s commitment alongside its allies, whatever the land where it is present.
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