Paris (AFP)
France has "no worries" for its defense industry, government spokesman Gabriel Attal assured Thursday, after the loss of a giant contract with Australia, which preferred a strategic partnership with the United States. United and the United Kingdom.
The diplomatic crisis between Paris and Washington which opened in the wake "is infinitely less a commercial and industrial crisis than a political and strategic crisis", underlined Mr. Attal on France Inter, the day after an interview between Emmanuel Macron and Joe Biden.
The lost contract concerned 12 conventionally propelled submarines (non-nuclear), for 50 billion Australian dollars (31 billion euros) at the time of the signing, or 90 billion dollars taking into account inflation on the program duration and cost overruns.
It was the largest contract for defense equipment ever signed by both a French industrialist and Australia.
Asked whether India could buy the submarines that will not be delivered to Canberra, Gabriel Attal simply assured that he had "no concern about our defense industry".
"Since the start of this five-year term, we have sold 88 Rafale, we have placed 30 billion more orders, 30 billion more deliveries, our submarines are internationally recognized flagships, a number of countries have adopted them. , other countries could acquire it, there may be orders that will be placed, "he enumerated, without however giving further details.
Referring to the interview of the French and American presidents on Wednesday, "an honest conversation which allowed several important gains", he considered that Joe Biden recognized the responsibility of the United States in the crisis ", which is" not trivial ", and the fact that" with us Europe was not looking for a big brother but a partner ".
"Now we need acts", he said, evoking the "vocation" of Europe to equip itself with an "important defense and to be autonomous", as well as "to have its own strategy in Indo-Pacific ".
He also said that in the Sahel, the United States "will engage more", without further details.
The two heads of state agreed to meet at the end of October in Europe, where the American president is expected to participate in the G20 in Rome on the 30th and 31st, then at the COP26 in early November in Glasgow.
© 2021 AFP