French officials fire up at ‘crude’ tactics from Scott Morrison after leaked texts surface

Irate French officials have unloaded on the “crude” tactics of Scott Morrison, and warned of a deepening diplomatic crisis.

Furious French officials have unloaded on the “crude and unconventional” tactics of Prime Minister Scott Morrison after a leak of private text messages.

Outraged advisers to the French President, Emmanuel Macron, have condemned the move suggesting it has deepened the diplomatic crisis.

The leak of the text messages to Australian media outlets followed President Macron declaring “I don’t think, I know” when asked if the PM had lied to him over the cancellation of the $90 billion submarine contract.

In response, private text messages between the two men promptly surfaced in Australian media outlets, which suggested President Macron knew what was coming.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Picture: Thomas Samson/AFP

“Confidence has been completely shattered,” a close adviser to Macron told Le Parisien. “Disclosing a text message exchange between heads of state or government is a pretty crude and unconventional tactic.”

Mr Morrison has not denied leaking the text messages.

Speaking in Glasgow, the Prime Minister was challenged directly by the ABC’s political editor Andrew Probyn whether he or his own office at his instruction had leaked the private text messages.

“Why did you decide to leak that text message?’’ the Prime Minister was asked

When directly asked he said, “I am not going to indulge your editorial on it.

“What I will simply say is this. We were contacted when we were trying to set up the call.

“(The French President) made it pretty clear he was concerned that this would be a phone call that could result in a decision by Australia not to proceed.”

French media also reported the Prime Minister had not asked for a meeting to clear things up at the G20 in Rome or the Glasgow climate change talks.

“The president was waiting for a proposition from the prime minister, which did not come,” the source said.

The Guardian reported on Wednesday that an official told Le Parisien that it “would never even enter the head” of the French president to disclose private communications in this manner.

“It is not the kind of thing that is likely to improve relations between France and Australia,” the source said.

The leaders of Australia and France have been accused of leaking and lying. Picture: Adam Taylor

In the leaked texts, President Macron asks Scott Morrison if he should expect “good or bad news on the submarines”.

French media described the leaked text messages as “spectacular and extremely rare”, and argued it didn’t prove President Macron knew what was going on at all.

Agence-France Presse reported that if a message did exist that proved he knew, the Australian media would have presumably “reported that instead”.

“We knew the Australians had some issues, but they only concerned technical aspects and the timetable, as with every big contract,” the French official said.

The French official also rejected the Prime Minister’s account that he made multiple attempts to contact the French.

Officials reportedly told Le Parisien only one phone call had come through to the palace, at 11am on a Wednesday – during Macron’s weekly cabinet meeting.

“It is difficult to believe that the Australian prime minister has not been advised of this constraint,” the official said. “He knew very well the president was unavailable.”

France was then blindsided when the new deal was announced, the source said.

Earlier this week, the Prime Minister provided a blow-by-blow of when he raised concerns, touching on when he raised issues with the French contract, including significant delays.

“This submarine was not the submarine that Australia needed,” he said

Originally published as French officials fire up at ‘crude’ tactics from Scott Morrison after leaked texts surface