Brussels. September 18. INTERFAX-Australia made a diplomatic mistake by concluding a deal with the United States and Great Britain within the framework of the AUKUS alliance to the detriment of the contract for the construction of submarines with France, said the French ambassador to Canberra, Jean-Pierre Tebo, before leaving for Paris for consultations.
"I think it was a huge mistake, very, very bad management of the partnership, because it's not so much about the contract as such: we had a partnership that was supposed to be based on trust, mutual understanding and honesty," Western media quoted Tebo as saying to journalists in Canberra.
Tebo also expressed regret that the situation has become so serious that he has to go to Paris for consultations and signing agreements on the creation of AUKUS.
"I am very sorry that I have to leave Australia. However, in this situation, there is a need to analyze what happened," the ambassador said.
He said that Australia, when contacting Paris, had never indicated that it could abandon the deal with France. The ambassador said that he learned about the cancellation of the agreement from the Australian press, although Canberra had many opportunities to inform him directly about its decision.
Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne also expressed regret over the recall of French Ambassador Jean-Pierre Tebo. Payne noted that she understands France's disappointment over Australia's rejection of the contract for the purchase of French submarines, but explained this decision by ensuring the interests of national security. The minister added that Canberra values its relations with Paris and is ready for cooperation in the future.
Earlier, US President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Ministers Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the creation of a new trilateral security partnership - AUKUS. According to the leaders, the alliance will help protect the interests of the three countries in the Indo-Pacific region and will allow Australia to build nuclear submarines for the first time, refusing to purchase them from France. The contract for the construction of submarines with the French company Naval Group was signed for $90 billion.
The announced decision to build nuclear submarines within the framework of AUKUS caused outrage in the French government. "This decision contradicts the letter and spirit of the cooperation that existed between France and Australia," Foreign and Armed Forces Ministers Jean - Yves Le Drian and Florence Parly said in a joint document this week.