France reserved as US moves to patch up ties strained over AUKUS subs deal

Antony Blinken was scheduled to hold ­potentially delicate talks in Paris to patch up ties with France, which is still angry over Australia’s cancellation of its submarine contract.

French President Emmanuel Macron is still angry over Australia’s cancellation of its submarine deal. Picture: AFP

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was scheduled to hold ­potentially delicate talks in Paris overnight to patch up ties with France, which is still angry over Australia’s cancellation of its submarine contract.

President Emmanuel Macron was furious in September when ­Australia scrapped its $90bn deal for French subs to pursue US ­nuclear versions instead.

He recalled his ambassadors from Washington and Canberra.

US President Joe Biden, possibly taken aback by the extent of Mr Macron’s anger, has since tried to make amends, with Karen Donfried, the Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs, ­admitting last week that “the September 15 announcement would have benefited from better and more open consultation among allies”.

Mr Blinken’s scheduled meeting with French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian is likely to lack the usual warmth between the two ­allied governments. Mr Le Drian’s spokeswoman said the minister saw the meeting merely as a chance to “identify stages that may allow a return of confidence between our two countries”.

In a further sign that French anger is still simmering, no official meeting is scheduled between Mr Macron and Mr Blinken. Instead, the US top diplomat is due to meet the French leader’s diplomatic ­adviser, Emmanuel Bonne.

This omission stands in stark contrast to the French President’s availability for Donald Trump’s secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, last November when he stopped off in Paris to say goodbye.

Mr Blinken’s trip to Paris had been scheduled before the sub­marines row erupted, and was to focus on a meeting of the OECD, but the fallout from the defence crisis is likely to dominate his two-day stay.

A fluent French speaker who spent part of his childhood in Paris, Mr Blinken will need all his knowledge of France and diplomatic acumen to reassure his hosts over the durability of the partnership with Washington’s oldest ally.

Ms Donfried, echoing France’s earlier assessment, said the US recognised that repairing ties “will take time and will take hard work and it will need to be demonstrated not only in words but also in deeds”.

France may have started softening its stance after Mr Biden spoke by phone with Mr Macron, who then sent his ambassador back to Washington.

Mr Macron is still livid with Australia, and a long-planned round of Australia-EU free-trade talks has been postponed a month.

Canberra announced the submarine decision as it joined a new alliance with Britain and the US, dubbed AUKUS, one of a series of initiatives by Mr Biden, who views countering China as the paramount concern of the US.

US officials said Mr Blinken would speak to France, which has a presence in the Indo-Pacific ­region through several overseas territories, about the Asia strategy.

“AUKUS is not intended to ­replace existing arrangements or existing partnerships,” Ms Donfried said. “On the contrary, we welcome the opportunity to discuss how to include the EU and other partners in our initiatives.”

AFP