Multilateral Maritime Exercise La Perouse

  • La Pérouse is a France-led exercise that is currently taking place in the Bay of Bengal.  
  • All QUAD member countries — India, the US, Japan and Australia — will be a part of France initiated joint naval exercise.
  • The exercises have been named after La Pérouse, a French naval officer and explorer of18th century.
  • France had initiated the joint naval exercise in 2019 and at that time had included US, Japanese, and Australian forces. 
  • India deployed its frontline warships and P-8I maritime patrol aircraft from the Eastern Naval Command at Vizag for this Quad-plus-France exercise.
RISING FRENCH INTEREST IN INDO-PACIFIC
  • France has the world's largest exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and includes territories in the Pacific Ocean and the Southern Indian Ocean. 
  • France also has 8,000 military personnel based in the region.
  • In 2019, the country published its Indo-Pacific strategy.
  • Its main objective was to promote a rules-based, multilateral regional order, free of any hegemony. 
  • In 2020, France became the 23rd member of the India ocean Rim Association (IORA). 

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