[ad_1]
In the report, J.-Y. Le Drian said he had decided to immediately call the two French ambassadors for consultations due to the “exceptional seriousness of the announcements made by Australia and the United States on September 15.”
Canberra’s decision to abandon the ocean-class submarine project that Australia and France have been working on since 2016 is “unacceptable behavior by allies and partners,” the minister said.
“The consequences affect the very concept of our unions, associations and the importance of India and the Pacific for Europe,” he added.
US President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday a new defense alliance between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom and plans to transfer nuclear submarine technology from the United States to Australia.
In addition to the underwater fleet, VICTIMS will join forces in cybernetics, artificial intelligence (IoT), especially applied IoT, quantum technology, certain underwater capabilities.
Generally, the pact is seen as designed to combat the rise of China.
The move angered France, which lost the contract to supply Australia with conventional submarines, valued at $ 50 billion in 2016 when the contract was signed. Australian dollars (31,000 million euros).
A White House official expressed “regret” over the removal of the French ambassador, but added: “In the coming days, we will continue to work to resolve our differences, as we did in the next stages of our long-term alliance.”
State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Twitter that Washington understands France’s position and is “in close contact” with Paris.
He added that the issue will be discussed at a “higher level,” including next week’s United Nations General Assembly, which will also be attended by J.-Y. Le Drian and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
At the time, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby acknowledged that previous telephone conversations between US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his French counterpart Florence Parly had shown that “much remains to be done regarding our defense relations with France “.
“Directly affects vision”
The withdrawal of the French ambassadors from the United States and Australia, important allies of France, is an unprecedented decision. This is the last diplomatic step that occurs when relations between countries in conflict enter into crisis, but it is very unusual among the Allies.
“I am being called for consultations in Paris,” French Ambassador Philippe Etienne wrote on Twitter. “This follows messages that directly affect the vision of our alliances, our alliances and the importance of the India-Pacific region for Europe.”
Paris sees itself as a major force in the India-Pacific region due to overseas territories like New Caledonia and French Polynesia, giving it a strategic and military establishment unmatched by any other European country.
France had not tried to hide its anger even before the ambassadors were withdrawn. On Thursday, J.-I. Le Drian has accused Canberra of stabbing Paris in the back and Washington of former President Donald Trump over the submarine deal.
The dispute, for the moment at least, has dashed hopes that relations between Paris and Washington will resume after Trump’s presidency, led by Biden and his secretary of state, Blinken, who is fluent in French and has studied at the French capital. .
French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune also said on Friday that after such a decision on submarines, Paris could not trust Canberra in ongoing negotiations on a trade agreement between the European Union and Australia.
In addition, France canceled a party scheduled for Friday at the embassy in Washington.
It is intended to mark the anniversary of the decisive naval battle of the American Revolution, in which France played an important role.
“Extremely irresponsible”
Australia has previously rejected China’s ire over its decision to acquire US nuclear submarines, while vowing to uphold the rule of law in the airspace and waters that Beijing claims.
Beijing called the new alliance an “extremely irresponsible” threat to regional stability, questioned Australia’s commitment to non-proliferation and warned Western allies that they were at risk of “setting foot”.
China has its “very important nuclear submarine construction program,” Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in an interview with 2GB radio on Friday.
China makes claims on nearly the entire resource-rich South China Sea, which transports trillions of dollars worth of goods each year, and rejects competing claims from Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
Beijing is accused of deploying a number of military equipment there, including anti-aircraft missiles and surface-to-air missiles, and China has ignored the 2016 International Court decision that its historic claims on almost all the waters of the South China Sea are unfounded.
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said in Washington that she understood the “disappointment” in Paris and looked forward to working with France to understand “the value we attach to bilateral relations and the work we want to continue together.”
