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France says Biden acted like Trump to sink Australia defense deal
The United States, Britain and Australia said they would establish a security partnership for the Indo-Pacific that will help Australia acquire US nuclear-powered submarines and scrap the $40 billion French-designed submarine deal.
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French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump walk in the courtyard as they leave after a welcoming ceremony at the Invalides in Paris, France, July 13, 2017. (Reuters/Charles Platiau)
F
rance accused US President Joe Biden on Thursday of stabbing it in the back and acting like his predecessor Donald Trump after Paris was pushed aside from a lucrative defense deal that it had signed with Australia for submarines.
The United States, Britain and Australia said they would establish a security partnership for the Indo-Pacific that will help Australia acquire US nuclear-powered submarines and scrap the $40 billion French-designed submarine deal.
"This brutal, unilateral and unpredictable decision reminds me a lot of what Mr Trump used to do," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told franceinfo radio. "I am angry and bitter. This isn't done between allies."
In 2016, Australia had selected French shipbuilder Naval Group to build a new submarine fleet worth $40 billion to replace its more than two-decades-old Collins submarines.
France's Naval Group, partly owned by the state, had been chosen to build 12 conventionally powered submarines to Australia, based on France's Barracuda nuclear-powered subs in development.
Two weeks ago, the Australian defence and foreign ministers had reconfirmed the deal to France, and French President Emmanuel Macron lauded decades of future cooperation when hosting Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in June.
"It's a stab in the back. We created a relationship of trust with Australia and that trust has been broken," Le Drian said.
