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The French government responded angry on Wednesday to the US agreement between Britain and Australia to provide Australia with a nuclear submarine.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and French Army Minister Florence Parli Joint statement written in sharp wordsThe decision announced by President Joe Biden “contrary to the wording and spirit of widespread cooperation between France and Australia, based on political trust and the development of a very sophisticated defense industry.” Australian technology base. “
“Excluding partners such as European allies and France from structural partnerships with Australia when faced with unprecedented challenges in the Indo-Pacific region in terms of our values and respect for multilateralism. It shows an inconsistency that France can only pay attention to and regret, based on the rule of law of the United States, “added the statement.
On Wednesday, Biden joined Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson to jointly announce the creation of an enhanced security partnership for the Asia-Pacific region to share submarine technology with Australia. ..
In the announcement, Biden referred to France, stating that France has a significant presence in the region, and the United States made France “a major partner and ally in strengthening the security and prosperity of the region.” He added that he considers it to be.
“The United States looks forward to working closely with France and other major nations as we move forward,” Biden said without elaboration.
But during the same announcement, Morrison Confirmed Australia has withdrawn from the reported $ 66 billion deal with France to produce nuclear submarines. Instead, Australia will use British and US technology to produce nuclear submarines, he added.
Thursday’s Le Dorian Explained The announcement to France as “piercing from behind” added that “trust was broken.”
The foreign minister also accused Biden of embarking on a “brutal” and “one-sided” decision that was reminiscent of the foreign policy movements made by his predecessor, President Donald Trump.
Thursday Johnson and Morrison follow angry words Both France still emphasized that it is an important ally in the region. Johnson described the relationship between France and Britain as “solid” in an interview, the BBC reported, and Morrison said French officials were “good partners.”
“Of course they are disappointed,” Morrison said in response to a joint statement by Le Dorian and Parley. report Associated Press. “They were good partners. It was about our strategic interests, our strategic capacity requirements, and our changing strategic environment, and we had to make that decision.”
The Epoch Times contacted the White House for comment.
Jack phillips
Senior reporter
Jack Phillips is a New York-based reporter for The Epoch Times.
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