Posted on 09/17/2021 6:58:22 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Earlier in the week, we were all treated to the announcement of a new and improved trilateral security pact between the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia (called AUKUS). The most memorable thing about the announcement (read Sister Toldjah’s post, Watch: Biden Makes International Headlines for Embarrassing Reason After Awkward Moment With Aussie PM) was Joey Soft Serve forgetting the name of the Australian prime minister.
Despite the placid, if short-bus-ish ambiance of the announcement, there was drama brewing out of sight.
Biden announced that the United States would allow nuclear submarine technology transfer to Australia. This is significant. It would make Australia the only nation other than Britain to have US nuclear submarine technology. It would change the nature of Australia’s submarine force from one focused on coastal defense to one that could strike against Chinese targets. The nuclear boats that Australia would acquire would outclass the Chinese nuclear boats and alter the balance of power in the Western Pacific. Everyone expected the Chicoms (and their paid-for “defense analyst” mouthpieces in the United States) to be upset, but no one really expected this:
Calling American and Australian behavior “unacceptable between allies and partners,” France announced on Friday that it was recalling its ambassadors to both countries in protest over President Biden’s decision to provide nuclear-powered submarines to Australia.
It was the first time in the history of the long alliance between France and the United States, dating back to 1778, that a French ambassador has been recalled to Paris in this way for consultations. The decision by President Emmanuel Macron reflects the extent of French outrage at what it has a called a “brutal” American decision and a “stab in the back” from Australia.
In a statement, Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French foreign minister, said the decision was made by Mr. Macron, who is understood to be furious about the way the United States, Britain and Australia negotiated the deal without informing France.
Australia on Wednesday canceled a $66 billion agreement to purchase French-built, conventionally powered submarines, hours before the deal with Washington and London was announced.
“At the request of the President of the Republic, I have decided to immediately recall our two ambassadors to the United States and Australia to Paris for consultations,” the statement said. “This exceptional decision is justified by the exceptional gravity of the announcements made on 15 September by Australia and the United States.”
Do you want to know how mad the French were? They compared Biden to Trump.
France reacted with fury to President Biden’s announcement of a deal to help Australia deploy nuclear-powered submarines, calling it a “unilateral, brutal, unpredictable decision” that resembled sudden policy shifts during the Trump administration.
https://t.co/2aqxidlNYn— NYT Politics (@nytpolitics) September 16, 2021
Here is how the Washington Post summarized the butt-hurt:
There are a number of reasons. For one, the deal was of virtually unrivaled economic significance to France’s defense sector, said Pierre Morcos, a French visiting fellow at the D.C.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The deal was crucial for “a whole network of small and medium enterprises” in France that were supposed to benefit from it, he said. The economic significance of the Australia deal has been compared to a landmark 2015 agreement between India and French company Dassault Aviation to supply 36 Rafale fighter jets.
Second, France stands to lose strategically as a result of Australia bowing out of its previous commitment. When the deal was struck, the French government celebrated a “strategic partnership … for the next 50 years.”
“This overall framework is now jeopardized,” Morcos said.
A third key reason for the French anger is the way the deal between Australia, Britain and the United States was announced. A French official said Thursday that Paris learned of the decision only through media reports — even though it had been negotiated among the three participants for months.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that France was “aware in advance” of the new agreement, although Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicated that awareness came only in the past day or two.
While the French were furious at the US and Australia, they dismissed the British involvement as only a pissed-off Frenchman can. This is a since-deleted tweet from the former French ambassador to the United States.
Too bad he deleted this tweet
pic.twitter.com/Z17Co8SFFs— streiff (@streiffredstate) September 18, 2021
All in all, it was a good say for Trump supporters and a not very good day for the whole “now the adults are in charge” bunch.
Life comes at you fast
pic.twitter.com/FNSjM617ky— Jewish Deplorable (@TrumpJew2) September 17, 2021
Congrats to Joe Biden and the rest of "the adults!"
https://t.co/Pafmh6dkXn pic.twitter.com/NZiZsCtdOz— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) September 17, 2021
It is sort of difficult to understand the thought process behind this gambit. Whatever was gained by giving Australia a nuclear boat could have been achieved by homeporting one or more US boats in Australia. While a $60+ billion loss to the US defense budget wouldn’t be much more than a rounding error, it is big, big money to France’s defense industry. Coming off the debacle in Afghanistan, while having some amusing qualities, this action underscores that under the Winken, Blinken, and Nod foreign policy team, the United States is a fickle and unreliable ally.
Thank God Joe Biden healed all the diplomatic wounds left behind by Donald Trump.https://t.co/JIGg29u0Iy
— Steve Maley (@DerekBarge) September 17, 2021
While I am certainly no fan of Biden this is France throwing a temper tantrum because they didn’t get what they want.
They can’t deliver what Australia has decided we need to defend ourselves. This is Australia looking out for its best interests in our own national defence and the United States and the United Kingdom assisting us to do so. And France will just have to learn to live with that. Nobody else is obliged to prop up their defence industry if it isn’t selling what we want.
Diplomacy is back!
Exactly my take on it too. Hasn’t it been 10 years already and France has yet to produce on their contract? That aside I think I need more popcorn.
No matter what Dementia Joe does California’s recent election proved that dems would rather go to hell with a dem than to vote for a Republican.
Australia signed a submarine contract with france for 50 billion. France then suddenly changed the amount due to 90 billion.
I think that makes Australia blameless for cutting and running.
Good old USA.
First they stiff the UK & Australia in August.
Next to keep things on a level playing field, they use the UK & Australia to stiff France.
I am so happy the ‘adults’ are back in charge, I just my immigrate somewhere. Anywhere.
Too simple for words. This new group forms Oceania. The big block is already aptly named EUrasia. China and its vassals form Eastasia.
The destruction of the language continues apace. Duckspeaking abounds (mockingbird) and doublespeak is the new orthodoxy. Recently, we saved $0.16 on barbeque while energy prices doubled! Doubleplusgood!
Don’t forget they stiffed Germany as well.
In addition, they withheld arm sales to Saudi Arabia and withdrew missile defense from them as well. We are not going to have any allies left.
But the experts are in charge, is the MSM narrative.
France 6 months ago: “the EU should not gang up on China”.
The EU months ago “lets sail near the South China Sea and ask to dock in Shanghai to show our respect”.
France today: “we were ENTITLED to that contract”.
France in the future: “lets see how we can undermine the quad, because what matters is our butthurt, not a global threat”.
Maybe if they put down their baguettes and actually built a submarine, this would not have been an issue. Maybe they would have been included, if we were sure what team they really were on.
Macron imagined himself the new leader of the free world and so entitled to the legacy of American technology. Ooopsie.
Looks like the beast with five eyes is tearing itself apart. The same beast which perpetrated the Russia hoax.
And some people thought there was no plan. The drop gets steeper from here. There went your stomach.
Part of increased budget was need for local AUS content... Labor & Capital
France is a Catholic country run by fools. Before I signed up at Free Rep, I bookmarked this article.
https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/889268/posts
France has ten newspapers like CNN that hate Catholics and America.
Amazing that France is upset about a America’s news deal with Australia.
youre right
Britain’s Parliament condemns him, France recalls their ambassadors. Canada suing over the oil pipeline cancellation.
At least half the people in America are against the democrats forced vaccination.
The only countries he has made happy are China and Afghanistan and all the south of the border ones sending their poorest people north. Plus here in the USA the democrat party thugs love the democrat party as they can burn down business’s and loot others and maim and kill with impunity.
I partially disagree. Biden did a behind the back deal to help the MIC. US needs the money for more material, upgrades on existing subs and new subs to be built. There are billions in this deal in the long run. Remember, Biden spent years in congress working for the MIC. He is still working for them.
I’m not saying for a moment there aren’t very real advantages for this for US companies. There are - from that perspective I would say it’s a win-win. America isn’t helping Australia out of a total sense of charity.
But from Australia’s perspective this had to be done more or less in secret until it was ready to be announced, or domestic politics certainly would have derailed it.
The one thing I hate about France:
When they had their revolution they DESTROYED CHURCES, MONASTERIES, ANY THING THAT THE CATHOLIC RELIGION HELD DEAR.
They debauched themselves in Churches and anyplace that the Church held sacred.
There will NEVER, EVER BE A LIGITIMATE COMPARISON OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION ...YEACH, TO OUR AMERICAN REVOLUTION.
France is an atheist country run by fools that has a bunch of old, unused Catholic churches. It hasn’t been Catholic in over 200 years.
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