Dubbed "Gulf Shield 01", the exercise will take place in UAE territory and international waters near the Straits of Hormuz, involving thousands of personnel in combined arms operations that will include simulated attacks on oil platforms.
"The scenario we have set up with the Emirates and Qatar involves a fictitious island in the strait, which becomes hostile and attacks some oil platforms in the region," said Lieutenant Colonel Thierry Fusalba.
Exercises are scheduled to take place from Feb. 23 to March 5, and will involve 1,500 French, 2,500 Emirate, and 1,300 Qatari personnel operating on land, at sea, and in the air, the ministry said.
Around a half dozen warships, 40 aircraft, and dozens of armoured vehicles will be in the war games, Fusalba said.
Paris signed a deal with the UAE in January to build France’s first permanent military installation in the Gulf, just across the water from Iran.
The base will accommodate 400 to 500 personnel, keeping France within reach of sea lanes through which over a third of global oil shipments pass.
Earlier this month U.S. naval vessels and Iranian speed boats came close to opening fire on each other in the area.
