The French ambassador to Australia, Jean-Pierre Thebault, has told Australian media that his mission in returning to the country is to determine whether France still trusts Australia after the sudden cancellation of a multibillion-dollar order for French submarines in favour of a new deal with the United States and the United Kingdom.
Speaking to local radio on Friday, Thebault said that while he understood that it was Australia’s sovereign right to make a new deal to serve its national interests, France took exception to “the way it was managed,” which he said was “a serious breach in trust” that needs to be repaired.
