Josh Frydenberg welcomes return of French ambassador to Canberra after subs deal furore

The Treasurer said he hoped France could move beyond its disappointments with Australia now that the ambassador had been reinstated.

Josh Frydenberg says he hopes Australia and France can move beyond “recent disappointments” and get the relationship “back on track” now that the French ambassador is returning to Canberra.

But whether the French President has spoken to Scott Morrison remains unclear.

After Australia spectacularly dumped a $90b submarine contract with France last month in favour of signing the AUKUS pact with the United Kingdom and the United States, Paris recalled its envoy from both Australia and the United States.

French President Emmanuel Macron later ordered the US ambassador to return to Washington after speaking to US President Joe Biden.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who had previously described the move as like being “stabbed in the back”, told parliament on Wednesday night local time that the ambassador to Australia would return to carry out “two missions”.

“(The missions are) to help to redefine our relationship with Australia in the future... and firmly defend our interests in the implementation of Australia’s decision to terminate the submarine program,” Mr Drian said.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the return of the French ambassador to Canberra was a welcome development. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw

Speaking to Today on Thursday morning, Mr Frydenberg could not answer whether Mr Macron and Mr Morrison had spoken to each other.

“These are developments that I won’t add further comment to other than saying I think it is welcomed,” Mr Frydenberg said.

“There is always lots of communication between countries at different levels.”

Mr Frydenberg said the two countries had had a “strong relationship” over many years.

“Of course they were disappointed in the way this contract has come to an end, but it is what it is and of course Australia is advancing its national interest by getting alongside the United Kingdom, the United States, getting access to the best technology to protect our national security,” he said.

France's ambassador to Australia, Jean-Pierre Thebault was recalled last month in a furious reaction to the $90b submarine contract Canberra axed in favour of a nuclear submarine deal. Picture: Newswire/Gary Ramage

Jean-Pierre Thebault, who had been the French ambassador in Canberra since 2020, told Radio National last month that France had been blindsided by the AUKUS deal and the implications it had on France.

“We discovered through the press that the most important person in the Australian government kept us in the dark until the last minute and was not willing to... have the decency to enter conversation about the alternative,” he said.

“This is not an Australian attitude towards friends. Maybe we’re not friends.”

Mr Morrison has rejected the implication that he had not warned France about the new deal.