France to discuss South China Sea issue

The French government will discuss with Australia how to better coordinate operations in the South China Sea to ensure free maritime sailing rights in the region are maintained, France's defence minister says.

Visiting Adelaide for a defence sector symposium on Monday, Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly said France would not "take sides" on the issue but would continue to sail through the region.

"It will be one of or topics of discussion how we could together better coordinate what we are doing in the South China Sea because we are very conscious that China is more and more assertive," she told reporters.

"France's position is very clear, that China sticks to the international rules, but we remain very open to dialogue."