Scott Morrison says it would have been naive not to expect France to react angrily after Australia cancelled its lucrative $90 billion submarine contract as the Prime Minister arrived in the United States for meetings with President Joe Biden and other world leaders.
Morrison, speaking after touching down at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport, said there was no way Australia could have been more transparent with the French about its plans without potentially derailing the highly sensitive plan to acquire the US and UK's nuclear-powered submarine technology.
Representatives from the 27 European Union nations will meet on Monday night (Tuesday morning AEST) in New York to discuss the "crisis" with Australia and whether to proceed with free trade discussions.
Several Australian government sources said they believed France was trying to scuttle the free trade deal to punish Australia for cancelling the submarines contract.
As well as meeting with Biden, Morrison is scheduled to meet in New York with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the leaders of Sweden and Austria.
In her first public comments about the AUKUS pact, von de Leyen said there were "a lot of questions that have to be answered" about the trilateral partnership.
"One of our member states has been treated in a way that is not acceptable," von de Leyen said.
"We want to know what happened and why, and first of all clarify that before we keep going on with business as usual."
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Crikey!
ScoMo should be informing Ms von de Leyen, NATO guy Stoltenberg and the other 29 EU officials...a few "home truths".
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Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen is a German politician and physician who has been President of the European Commission since 1 December 2019.
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Lovely.
ScoMo should be asking her/them if NATO countries have increased their financial investment in self defence missiles, bombs, warships, air forces etc as requested by President Trump, who said they weren't paying their share and were relying too much on America for their defence.
ScoMo should be telling them that the fields of Europe/Middle East were awash with the blood of Aussie troops in WW1 and WW2 defending them from Germany and Nazi Germany.
As well as the blood of American and British troops. the blood of the new AUKUS pact nations.
He should be TELLING them that.
He should also be telling them that Australia doesn't need their European cars, vans, trucks ..Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW, Citroen, Renault...that she has plenty of Japanese and American vehicles to buy...and if necessary will build her own cars...2 axles, 4 wheels, coal-fired engines, electric engines...all good.
Or their whipped cream in a can made in Belgium.