France will deploy the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and its battle group from January to April to support French military operations in the Middle East, President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday. "The aircraft carrier will support Chammal operations (in the Middle East) from January to April 2020 before deploying to the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea", Macron said at a New Year speech to the French military, according to Reuters. The deployment comes amid growing tensions between Iran and the United States and French concerns that the fight against ISIS militants may be weakened within that context, the news agency said.