Macron, Biden to talk in ‘coming days’ about subs spat

US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron will talk on the phone in the coming days amid high
tension over a submarines contract, a French government spokesman said
Sunday.

The announcement comes a day after France recalled its ambassadors to
Washington and Canberra, unhappy over secret US-Australia negotiations that
led to the cancellation of a multi-billion Australian order for French
submarines.

“There will be an exchange on the phone in the coming days,” spokesman
Gabriel Attal told the BFM news channel, adding that the request for the
converation had come from Biden.

Macron will ask the US president for “clarification” after the
announcement of a US-Australian-British defence pact as part of which
Canberra is to buy American nuclear-powered submarines, cancelling a huge
contract for diesel-electric French vessels.

“We want explanations,” Attal said, adding that the US had to answer for
“what looks a lot like a major breach of trust”.

Earlier Sunday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison rejected France’s
accusations that Canberra lied about its plans to cancel the contract, saying
he had raised concerns over the deal “some months ago”.

AFP