The move highlights growing concerns

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“We were not informed until the first news of this agreement was published in the American and Australian press, hours before Joe Biden’s official announcement,” he said.

The French naval group, partly state-owned, had been chosen to build 12 conventionally powered submarines for Australia, based on the French Barracuda nuclear submarines under development.

The contract was worth around A $ 50 billion (€ 31 billion, $ 36.5 billion) when it was announced in 2016.

But Biden and the Australian and British prime ministers on Wednesday announced a new defense pact that would see Canberra acquire a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, a privilege reserved for a few American allies.

about China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific, where France is also job function email database seeking to protect its interests, including the overseas territories of New Caledonia and French Polynesia.

When asked if Paris had been “duped” by Washington on what Le Drian called a “contract of the century” for French shipyards, the minister replied: “Your analysis of the situation is more or less correct. “.

He said France and its allies were working on a “coherent and structured Indo-Pacific policy” in the face of Beijing’s growing regional power.

“We were discussing this with the United States just recently, and here comes this break,” Le Drian said, calling it “a huge breach of trust.”

“We will need clarification. We have contracts, the Australians must tell us how they plan to get out,” he added.

– Clear eyes –