Ours is bigger! France mocks size of British warship visiting? Vietnam – radio free Asia
Posted: Wed Jul 09, 2025 9:35 am
A British frigate ended a visit to Vietnam on Monday and left some turbulence in its wake – an unlikely social media feud between Britain and France.
The acrimony between Britain and France was fueled by Brexit and the new AUKUS (Australia-UK-US) security pact that led Australia to cancel a large submarine contract with France in favor of American and British technologies.
These tensions surfaced when HMS Richmond, part of the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier strike group, arrived in central Vietnam last Friday for a four-day visit.
The British Embassy in Vietnam posted a photo of the frigate moored at Cam Ranh Bay on its Twitter page, saying the visit “demonstrates the UK’s commitment to a continued and reliable presence in the Indo- Peaceful”.
A few hours later, the official account of the French Embassy in Vietnam (@FranceauVietnam) replied in the same post: “Nice ship @UKinVietnam (British Embassy account)! Ours seems a bit bigger though. It was also at Cam Ranh last spring.
Richmond 2.jpgHe also retweeted a few photos from April when French Navy phone number library helicopter carrier Tonnerre and frigate Surcouf visited Cam Ranh. The two ships were participating in the Navy’s Jeanne D’arc 2021 mission aimed at reaffirming France’s commitment and interest in the Indo-Pacific.
The Tonnerre (Tonnerre) is a Mistral-class amphibious assault ship with a displacement of 21,500 tonnes and capable of carrying 16 heavy helicopters. HMS Richmond carries a helicopter, a Wildcat HMA.2 and has a displacement of 4,900 tonnes.
The post from the French Embassy caused a stir on social media with hundreds of Twitter users, some calling it “silly” and “childish”.
The acrimony between Britain and France was fueled by Brexit and the new AUKUS (Australia-UK-US) security pact that led Australia to cancel a large submarine contract with France in favor of American and British technologies.
These tensions surfaced when HMS Richmond, part of the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier strike group, arrived in central Vietnam last Friday for a four-day visit.
The British Embassy in Vietnam posted a photo of the frigate moored at Cam Ranh Bay on its Twitter page, saying the visit “demonstrates the UK’s commitment to a continued and reliable presence in the Indo- Peaceful”.
A few hours later, the official account of the French Embassy in Vietnam (@FranceauVietnam) replied in the same post: “Nice ship @UKinVietnam (British Embassy account)! Ours seems a bit bigger though. It was also at Cam Ranh last spring.
Richmond 2.jpgHe also retweeted a few photos from April when French Navy phone number library helicopter carrier Tonnerre and frigate Surcouf visited Cam Ranh. The two ships were participating in the Navy’s Jeanne D’arc 2021 mission aimed at reaffirming France’s commitment and interest in the Indo-Pacific.
The Tonnerre (Tonnerre) is a Mistral-class amphibious assault ship with a displacement of 21,500 tonnes and capable of carrying 16 heavy helicopters. HMS Richmond carries a helicopter, a Wildcat HMA.2 and has a displacement of 4,900 tonnes.
The post from the French Embassy caused a stir on social media with hundreds of Twitter users, some calling it “silly” and “childish”.