France set to hijack our Royal Navy to create a European military force

French politicians said yesterday that Gordon Brown is negotiating a scheme that would mean an end to the centuries-old independence of Nelson's 'Senior Service'.

The revelation is likely to embarrass Mr Brown, who is already under fire for failing to pull the plug on the European constitution.

The French have been pressing for the creation of a joint European military force to match the might of U.S. forces for years.

Hand over: The French want our Royal Navy aircraft carriers to form a European naval fleet

The defence co-operation project, proposed by French president Nicolas Sarkozy, is expected to be a centre-piece of the French presidency of the EU, which begins in July.

It would see a British aircraft carrier become a permanent part of an EU naval force, along with ships from other countries.

An aide to French defence minister Herve Morin said negotiations with Britain were well advanced on creating a 'European naval group'.

But the fact it is France leading the push for an EU defence force will be seen by many as a direct threat to Britain's military independence.

Tory defence spokesman Dr Liam Fox said: 'The EU's military ambitions know no bounds. If they think the Royal Navy will sail under the EU flag they had better think again.

'How is it supposed to work? Are we supposed to say, "Sorry, it's our turn to use the aircraft carrier"? It's ridiculous.

'The whole concept of sharing naval assets with any other country is sheer nonsense. The idea of the Royal Navy flying the EU flag makes a mockery of centuries of British naval tradition.'

Work is also under way to create a fleet of A400M military aircraft which would be available to EU members on a timeshare basis.

The French are also looking to introduce military exchanges that would, for example, allow Polish officers to have some of their training in France, helping to create a more integrated European military culture.

In Berlin, a government spokesman said Germany would give the plans serious consideration.

'We'll have to wait and see what sort of proposals the French pres-idency unveils,' he said.

France and Britain have been looking for ways to increase military cooperation for at least a decade and are working on creating a joint fleet of helicopters for deployment in Afghanistan.

The MoD is pursuing talks with the French in part because it is facing budget pressures that are forcing it to share costs.

The Government is expected to give the go-ahead this week for the Royal Navy's two new aircraft carriers as part of an Anglo-French project.

The French are happy to cooperate because they are also under pressure to spend less.

Mr Sarkozy said yesterday that he planned to create a smaller French army which is better equipped to respond to modern day threats and announced plans to cut more than 50,000 military posts, reducing it to 225,000 personnel.