The tension continues on the AUSKUS pact: Joe Biden defended the agreement with Australia and the European Union supported France

The president of the United States, Joe Biden, met Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison this Tuesday in New York and defended its alliance with this country, at a time of common tensions with France and, more generally, with the European Union.

Biden met Morrison at a New York hotel shortly after giving his first speech at the United Nations General Assembly, and both avoided directly mentioning the diplomatic crisis with France, triggered following a defense pact between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

However, Morrison said his alliance with Biden involved cooperating “with many others,” including countries in Southeast Asia and Europe., and the US president agreed. “Our alliance is consistent with all other democracies in the worldBiden said.

The Australian leader said that ‘There is no doubt’ that Biden ‘understands’ the importance of the Indo-Pacific, and the need for “a world order that promotes freedom”.

None of them responded to multiple questions from journalists about their relationship with France, which has called on its ambassadors in the two countries for consultations and accuses them of treason, disloyalty and of having broken confidence necessary between allies.

The French unrest began after the announcement last week that the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia had entered into a defense pact in which Washington and London will help Australians develop nuclear powered submarines.

This caused Australia canceled a lucrative contract, valued at some 56,000 million euros (about $ 65,656 million at today’s exchange rate), whereby France would deliver 12 conventionally-powered submarines to this country ; and this greatly irritated Paris, which did not learn of these plans until a few hours before the official announcement.

Closed support from the European Union to France

In this photo, the Europeans on Tuesday supported France against Australia and the United States for the submarine crisis, seen in the The EU as a “red flag” to strengthen its unity and autonomy.

The whole EU reacted without hiding its outrage at the announcement of the AUKUS military alliance which unites the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, without even Brussels having been informed in due time.

“There is a a growing feeling in Europe – and I say this with regret – that something has been broken in our transatlantic relations “, declared the European Commissioner for the Internal Market and Industry, Thierry Breton, on a visit to the American capital. Breton also noticed that “Confidence is not a given.”

Also in New York, during the United Nations General Assembly, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, met the Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison. “Frank, direct and direct exchange on AUKUS. Clarity is needed among friends. Dialogue is the key to building strong partnerships “Michel noted on Twitter.

German Chancellor Heiko Maas criticized what happened. “What was decided, and the way it was decided, was irritating and disappointing, and not just for France”, noted.

“I understand very well the disappointment of our French allies. It is a red flag for all of us in the European Union “German Minister of European Affairs Michael Roth said in Brussels. The Minister added that the states of the European bloc “we must ask ourselves how to strengthen our sovereignty, how to show more unity in matters of foreign and security policy”.

Roth made the remarks Tuesday at a meeting of EU affairs ministers in Brussels. The crisis that emerged, especially between France and Australia, was not on the meeting’s agenda, but it became clear that the issue was a priority.

“It’s a European problem”, French bloc minister Clément Beaune said. “I think we have to, without aggression and without upsetting our allies, by being more sovereign, more autonomous, more able to defend our interests, and to think for ourselves. We have seen it in the crisis in Afghanistan and we see it in this crisis, ”he added.

Beaune hailed the “full support” of EU countries to France, and warned that his government is not exaggerating the seriousness of the matter.

The French President, Emmanuel Macron will discuss it in the coming days with his American counterpart Joe BidenBut he has already spoken by phone with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with whom he promised “to act jointly” to promote stability in the Indo-Pacific region, rejecting “any form of hegemony”.

(With information from AFP and EFE)

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