▲ Jean-Yves LeDrian, Minister of Foreign Affairs of France
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves LeDrian appeared on French Info Radio on the morning of the 16th (local time) on the morning of the 16th local time and said, "I was hit in the head properly", "We built a relationship of trust with Australia, but we were betrayed, and today I am very upset", "This is not something we should do between our allies," he said, expressing his anger towards Australia.
This is because Australia canceled a contract with the French defense company Naval Group when it decided to develop a nuclear-powered submarine with support from the United States and Britain.
The Nabal Group signed a contract in 2016 to supply Australia with up to 12 diesel submarines, estimated to be worth about KRW 77 trillion.
"I think this cruel, one-sided and unpredictable decision is something that former President Donald Trump should do," Ledrian said.
US President Joe Biden previously announced that the US, Britain and Australia would support Australia to possess nuclear submarines as they launched a new trilateral security alliance, Orcus, in the Indo-Pacific region to contain China.
France's Defense Minister Florence Parly also warned in an interview with RFI Radio that Australia would face "very bad news" if it did not keep its promises.
"We are closely watching how the United States has treated our allies," Parley said.
The French government-owned Naval Group said in a statement that it was "deeply disappointed" with the decision, saying "over the past five years, we have done our best in both France and Australia and have kept all our promises."
(Photo = Reuters, Yonhap News)