France to Resume Defense Cooperation With Australia After Submarine Dispute

France and Australia are resuming defense cooperation following the breakdown of a major submarine contract that strained bilateral relations.

This was reported by Channel News Asia.

According to French Ambassador to Australia Pierre-André Imbert, military ties between the two countries are being rebuilt. He said France had expressed “deep regret” after Australia had canceled a multi-billion-euro deal to purchase a fleet of diesel-powered submarines.

Relations began to improve following Australia’s payment of compensation, about €555 million, to French defense firms, which helped rebalance the partnership.

A key step toward restoring cooperation took place in September 2022, when Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles and his French counterpart Sébastien Lecornu met in Brest and announced the resumption of dialogue, describing the 2021 rupture as a “deep diplomatic rift.”

Australia scrapped the contract in favor of acquiring nuclear-powered submarines through the AUKUS pact with the United States and the United Kingdom.

France viewed the switch to a British-American alternative and the loss of the agreement as a betrayal.

Since then, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong have pursued a strategy to rebuild trust with Paris.

The two countries now plan to collaborate on defense, the use of military bases in the Indo-Pacific, and climate security.

“Right now, the first pillar of our cooperation is defense and security, so we have a very good level of interaction,” ambassador Imbert told AFP.

Militarnyi previously reported that France was also deepening defense ties in East Asia and Oceania, including a deal to supply Rafale fighter jets to Indonesia.

That delivery marked the final phase of a contract for 42 Rafale aircraft.