France and Australia have been at loggerheads since Canberra opted for nuclear-powered submarines to be built with US and British technology rather than continue with a French submarine contract.
The French ambassador to Australia,Jean-Pierre Thebault,accused the Morrison government ofstabbing France in the back.
The new security alliance,dubbed AUKUS,is designed to give Australia access to nuclear-powered submarines for the first time,but it caused a major diplomatic rift after France said it was not informed in advance.
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Emmanuel Macron laterbranded Scott Morrison a liar after the Prime Minister claimed he had informed the French President the deal would be scrapped.
Paris briefly recalled its ambassadors from Australia and the United States in protest.
A flurry of diplomatic contact with Washington resulted in an acknowledgement by US President Joe Biden that the deal’s announcement “was not handled in a graceful way”.