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French warship in Colombo
A French warship, the flagship of the French fleet in the Indian Ocean maritime zone arrived in Colombo, on a courtesy call, on Friday.

The warship, with its crew of 177, will be in Colombo until Tuesday. The ship's crew includes 13 officers and is captained by Lieutenant Commander Pierre-Henri Favreau who has graduated from the Naval Academy and the Joint College of Paris. Commander Favreau is qualified and trained as a fighter pilot.

The Commander in Chief of the Indian Ocean maritime zone, referred to as 'Alindien' by the French Navy, Rear Admiral Richard Wilmot-Roussel is also on board with his staff of 31 including eight officers.

The French embassy said Rear Admiral Wilmot-Roussel would be having extensive discussions with naval, defence and political authorities with special emphasis on ways of increasing bilateral cooperation. The French Ambassador Marie-France Pagnier and Defence Attache Colonel Jean Pierre Seznec will accompany the Rear Admiral during his visits.

Rear Admiral Wilmot-Roussel hosted a cocktail party on board the ship for high ranking officials, diplomats, representatives of Sri Lankan society and French nationals living here.

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