The French ambassador to Australia, who was recalled by Paris after the cancellation of a major contract for the purchase of French submarines, will return to Canberra, the head of French diplomacy announced yesterday.
"I asked our ambassador to return to Canberra with two missions, to help redefine the terms of our relationship with Australia in the future (...) and to vigorously defend our interests in the tangible implementation of Australia's decision to put an end to the program of future submarines ", said Jean Yves Lentrian during a meeting in the French National Assembly.
AUKUS, a trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, announced on 15 September 2021 for the Indo-Pacific region helped Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines at the expense of a submarine deal with France.
Australia cancelled the contract with France at the last minute, taking the French government by surprise causing a diplomatic rift between the two countries.
