Australia regretted the French ambassador’s call for consultations for the cancellation of the contract for the sale of submarines

The Australian government regretted this Saturday that France summoned its ambassador to Canberra for consultations after Australia’s defense agreement with the United States and the United Kingdom which involves the cancellation of an order for French submarines.

A spokesperson for the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs noted that the decision to break order with France and to sign the agreement with the United States and the United Kingdom was taken in accordance with their “national security interests” in the Indo-Pacific region.

“Australia values ​​its relationship with France, which is an important partner and an essential contributor to stability, particularly in the Indo-Pacific. This will not change, ”said the statement quoted by the portal of the Australian network ABC.

“We hope to be able to resume contact with France on many subjects of common interest, based on shared values”the Australian spokesperson added.

The tension was generated after last Wednesday The United States, United Kingdom and Australia will announce a defense alliance in the Indo-Pacific region, the first effect of which is the announcement of the cancellation of a contract that Canberra had signed with Paris for the purchase of submarines. conventional valued at around 56,000 million euros ($ 65,000 million).

In return, Australia agrees to study purchase of American nuclear submarines.

In an interview on Friday with ABC, the French Ambassador to Australia, Jean-Pierre Thebault, said he had learned from the press of Australia’s decision to break the contract for the manufacture of submarines signed in 2016 with the French naval group.

“We have been deliberately ignored”said the French ambassador, who added that it was a breach of trust between the two countries.

“Is it possible that you did not know, that you did not mention, that you even refused to discuss such a matter with a trusted partner like France?”, he said.

A White House official said that The United States regretted the French decision and had been in close contact with Paris on this matter.He added that Washington would commit to settling disputes with France in the coming days.

A diplomatic source in France said he was the first time that Paris has called its ambassadors this way. The press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs He did not mention Britain, but a diplomatic source said Paris considered London to have joined the deal opportunistically..

“We don’t need to consult our (British) ambassador to know what to do or draw conclusions.”added the source.

However, the Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, said on the same Friday in a radio interview that in June, he told French President Emmanuel Macron of his doubts about the suitability of French submarines taking into account the needs of the region.

“I made it clear to him, we had a long dinner in Paris, our concern about the suitability of conventional submarines to cope with the new strategic environment that we have.”Morrison said.

The Secretary of State of the United States, Antony Blinken, tried to calm the French protest, calling France an essential partner in the Indo-Pacific.

(With information from EFE and Reuters)

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