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France accuses Australia and US of ‘lying’ in escalating crisis

France on Saturday accused Australia and the United States of lying over a ruptured Australian contract to buy French submarines, saying a grave crisis was under way between the allies.

Published: 19 September 2021 09:56 CEST
France accuses Australia and US of 'lying' in escalating crisis
French President Emmanuel Macron (2/L) and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (C) standing on the deck of a Collins-class submarine. Photo: BRENDAN ESPOSITO / POOL / AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday recalled the ambassadors to Canberra and Washington in an unprecedented move to signal his fury over Australia’s decision to break a deal for the French submarines in favour of American nuclear-powered vessels.

The row has, for now, ended hopes of a post-Donald Trump renaissance in relations between Paris and Washington under President Joe Biden and also focused French attention on boosting the European Union’s security strategy as it ponders NATO’s future.

Speaking to France 2 television, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian gave no indication Paris was prepared to let the crisis die down, using distinctly undiplomatic language towards Australia, the United States and Britain, which is also part of the three-way security pact.

“There has been lying, duplicity, a major breach of trust and contempt,” Le Drian said. “This will not do.”

He described the withdrawal of the ambassadors for the first time in the history of relations with the countries as a “very symbolic” act that aimed “to show how unhappy we are and that there is a serious crisis between us”.

On Sunday, Australian Finance Minister Simon Birmingham again insisted his country had informed the French government “at the earliest available opportunity, before it became public”.

He told national broadcaster ABC that it was “always going to be a difficult decision” to cancel the French deal.

“We don’t underestimate the importance now of… ensuring that we re-establish those strong ties with the French government and counterparts long into the future,” he added. “Because their ongoing engagement in this region is important.”

‘The third wheel’

Le Drian also issued a stinging response to a question over why France had not recalled its ambassador to Britain, which was also part of the security pact that led to the rupture.

“We have recalled our ambassadors to (Canberra and Washington) to re-evaluate the situation. With Britain, there is no need. We know their constant opportunism. So there is no need to bring our ambassador back to explain,” he said.

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Of London’s role in the pact under Prime Minister Boris Johnson, he added with derision: “Britain in this whole thing is a bit like the third wheel.”

NATO would have to take account of what has happened as it reconsiders strategy at a summit in Madrid next year, he added.

France would make a priority now of developing an EU security strategy when it takes on the bloc’s presidency at the start of 2022, he said.

Admiral Rob Bauer, chair of NATO’s Military Committee, earlier played down the dangers, saying it was not likely to have an impact on “military cooperation” within the alliance.

‘Resolve our differences’

Biden announced the new Australia-US-Britain defence alliance on Wednesday, extending American nuclear submarine technology to Australia as well as cyber-defence, applied artificial intelligence and undersea capabilities.

The pact is widely seen as aimed at countering the rise of China.

The move infuriated France, which lost a contract to supply conventional submarines to Australia that was worth €31 billion euros when signed in 2016.

A White House official on Friday expressed “regret” over the French envoy’s recall but added: “We will continue to be engaged in the coming days to resolve our differences, as we have done at other points over the course of our long alliance.”

State Department spokesperson Ned Price said in a tweet that Washington understood France’s position and was in “close contact” with Paris.

He added that the issue would be discussed “at the senior level”, including at the United Nations General Assembly next week, which both Le Drian and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will attend.

Le Drian had on Friday described the submarine move as a “stab in the back” and said the behaviour of the Biden administration had been comparable to that of Trump whose sudden changes in policy exasperated Europe.

Australia has also shrugged off Chinese anger over its decision to acquire the nuclear-powered submarines, while vowing to defend the rule of law in airspace and waters where Beijing has staked hotly contested claims.

Beijing described the new alliance as an “extremely irresponsible” threat to regional stability, questioning Australia’s commitment to nuclear
non-proliferation and warning the Western allies that they risked “shooting themselves in the foot”.

Member comments

  1. Does this mutual disrespect between France , United States, and Australia represent a newly developed animosity or simply a temporary uncovering of a very long term mutual hostility?

    The definition of diplomacy may best be described as the subterfuge of politeness used to cover up true feelings of intolerance!

    France and the European Union would be wise to continue their strengthened economic and even military independence to avoid diplomatic setbacks like these.

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ELECTIONS

‘Double border’ and ‘national priority’: French immigration under far right

The far-right party of Marine Le Pen has vowed to promote a policy of "national priority" and drastically curb what it calls uncontrolled immigration in order to "preserve French civilisation."

Published: 3 July 2024 17:54 CEST
'Double border' and 'national priority': French immigration under far right

If it wins an absolute majority in the second round of snap elections on Sunday, the Rassemblement National (RN) party said it would adopt an “emergency” law on immigration, but the constitution and European treaties would have to be revised for the party’s programme to be implemented.

Here AFP looks at some of the most controversial proposals of the party which is currently the most popular in France.

‘National priority’

The Rassemblement National’s top political pillar is the principle of “national preference” — now called “national priority”. It would limit welfare benefits to only French nationals.

In April, France’s Constitutional Council rejected a request by the centre-right Republicans party to hold a referendum on immigration, which would include a proposal to make access to some welfare benefits conditional on the length of residence in the country.

Disadvantaged people should not be deprived of France’s “policy of national solidarity,” said Laurent Fabius, the Socialist head of the Council. The principle of national preference was contrary to the constitution, he said.

READ MORE: What is ‘national preference’ for the French and how would it hurt foreigners?

‘Double border’

RN party leader Jordan Bardella, who will become prime minister at the age of 28 if it wins an absolute majority, has proposed the introduction of a “double border”.

The measure would tighten controls at the European Union’s external borders and impose the return of national border controls to reserve free movement within the Schengen zone to “European nationals only”, says the RN.

Yves Pascouau, a senior research associate at the Institut Jacques Delors, said that Europeans cannot be banned from entering France.

“The Schengen agreements establish freedom of movement,” he said, adding that calling a referendum or revising the constitution would not help.

“This goes beyond French matters — it’s the Schengen agreements that apply,” he said.

State medical aid

Under the RN, the AME, which guarantees free medical care to undocumented migrants who have resided in France for more than three months, would be replaced with a fund covering only life-threatening emergencies.

The 1946 constitution states that France will ensure to the individual and to the family the conditions necessary for their development and that it guarantees the protection of health for “all.”

“To completely restrict this state medical aid, or to abolish it with all the dangers for public health that this could create, is to ignore the constitutional imperative,” said Anne-Charlene Bezzina, an expert in public law.

Birthright principle

The RN wants to abolish France’s centuries-old principle of “droit du sol”, which grants French nationality to people born in France to foreign parents on certain conditions.

The far-right party says that only people born to at least one French parent should have automatic access to French nationality.

Others can make a request to obtain citizenship.

France has recently moved to revoke birthright citizenship in the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte to stem migration.

Bezzina suggested that the restriction of “droit du sol” across France would not pass unless the constitution was revised.

“The acquisition of nationality is enshrined in an 1889 decree, and has been continuously applied,” she said.

Dual nationals

Ahead of the first round of parliamentary elections, Bardella sparked an outcry by saying his party wanted to ban dual nationals from holding jobs in a number of sensitive sectors such as security and defence. He said “very few people” would be affected.

Macron’s government has slammed the proposal, which violates the principle of equality.

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: The French far-right’s proposal to ban dual nationals from certain jobs

“The message that you send is dual nationals are half-nationals,” Prime Minister Gabriel Attal told Bardella in a tense debate in June.

The proposal opens up the possibility of “recourse before the European Court of Human Rights or the Council of State”, said Serge Slama, an expert in public law.

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