France recalls ambassadors to US, Australia over
submarine spat
Decision ‘is justified by the exceptional gravity’ of
the situation, says foreign minister.
BY RYM
MOMTAZ
September
17, 2021 10:12 pm
https://www.politico.eu/article/france-recalls-ambassadors-to-us-australia-over-submarine-spat/
PARIS —
France has recalled its ambassadors to the U.S. and Australia in response to
the strategic partnership with the U.K. that displaced a multibillion-euro
submarine contract Paris had signed with Canberra.
“At the
request of the President of the Republic, I have decided to immediately recall
for consultations our ambassadors to the U.S. and Australia,” French Foreign
Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement.
“This
exceptional decision is justified by the exceptional gravity of the
announcements made on September 15 by Australia and the United States,” the
statement continued.
The U.S.,
Australia and U.K. announced on Wednesday a landmark pact that would allow
cooperation on military technology but that also saw Australia ditch a deal
worth more than €50 billion with France’s Naval Group to build a fleet of
submarines, a move Le Drian called a “stab in the back.”
Even though
it was Australia that canceled the contract, the bulk of French ire was
squarely directed at the U.S.
“The
American choice to push aside a European ally and partner like France … shows a
lack of coherence that France can only note and regret,” according to a joint
statement from Defense Minister Florence Parly and Le Drian that was France’s
first official response to the announcement.
The French
embassy in Washington also canceled in protest a reception it was hosting on
Friday to mark the 240th anniversary of the Battle of the Chesapeake, which
commemorates a French naval victory over a British fleet during the American
Revolution.
Le Drian
will be in New York Monday to participate in the United Nations General
Assembly.
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