U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday called France a vital partner in the Indo-Pacific, comments that appeared aimed at calming French anger after the United States, Australia and the UK clinched a deal to supply Australia with submarines.
The three countries said on Wednesday they would establish a security partnership for the Indo-Pacific that would help Australia acquire U.S. nuclear-powered submarines and see it scrap a $40 billion French-designed submarine deal.Speaking at a news conference after meetings between the U.S.
He added that U.S. officials had been in touch with their French counterparts in the past 24-48 hours to discuss the deal, including before the announcement. In 2016, Australia selected French shipbuilder Naval Group to build a new submarine fleet worth $40 billion to replace its more than two-decades-old Collins submarines.
The White House on Thursday defended the U.S. decision, rejecting criticism from both China and France over the deal.China said the United States, Australia and the UK were "severely damaging regional peace and stability.""In our view, it's about security in the Indo-Pacific," said Psaki. She said she would leave it to Australia on why it sought the technology from the United States.
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