Anthony Albanese appears to be serving humble pie as he vows to settle the score over a canceled submarine project that caused the French to fume despite Australia paying millions in compensation.
The Australian Prime Minister will dine with Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, in Paris and has said that he would not rule out expressing regret for the Morrison government’s decision to cancel a $90 billion submarine contract.
Mr. Albanese has pleaded that he will resolve “trust” difficulties after Mr. Macron accused former prime minister Scott Morrison of lying in the ensuing controversy.
Mr. Albanese stated that bridges still needed to be created while refusing to rule out issuing an apology during their lunch at the Elysee Palace.
He declared, “I look forward to having a positive relationship with President Macron.”
“I’ve been very clear about my position regarding Australia’s leadership engagement with friends.
But what I really want to do is make sure that we can advance. It should be a partnership in which we can trust one another and profit from each other’s company.
After the “betrayal” and “deceit” about the submarine contract under the previous coalition government, Mr. Albanese was questioned if French businesses could still have faith in him.
He responded, “Absolutely.”
Since that is how I deal with people and how I became prime minister, everyone should be able to trust me, he said.
In response to the Australian government’s decision to cancel a $90-billion deal to build 12 submarines last year, Naval Group, a French shipyard, will get $835 million in compensation from Australia.
Andrew Hastie, the defense spokesperson for the opposition, made an effort to separate the previous administration from the compensation figure.
There were “secret negotiations with Defense,” but Mr. Albanese has reached this agreement, according to Mr. Hastie.
We had set our sights on a much lower number.
The proposal was abandoned by the Morrison administration in favor of nuclear-powered submarines, which were made possible by the AUKUS alliance between the US, UK, and Canada.
After the May federal election, Mr. Macron called Mr. Albanese for the first time and reminded him of what Paris called a “serious breach of trust.”
After a “breakdown,” Mr. Albanese stated that it was time for the partnership between Paris and Canberra to “start a new dawn.”
The prime minister stated that during his discussion with Mr. Macron, he would also talk about a free trade agreement with Europe and that the two leaders will have “much to say” later.
According to Mr. Albanese, both President Macron and Australia wish to have positive relationships with one another.
Negotiations for the trade agreement have stopped for two reasons, the other being Australia’s lack of action on climate change.
One of those reasons is the strained relations between the two countries.
On Thursday, Mr. Albanese met with Mathias Cormann, the current secretary-general of the OECD and a former coalition finance minister.
They shook hands heartily in front of flags from the organization’s member countries.
After that, he spoke before the OECD council, where he answered questions from members, including the US, about Lithuania, Australia’s assistance to Ukraine, Australia’s climate change efforts, Japan, and international law in the Indo-Pacific.
In order to examine investment potential in Australia, Mr. Albanese also met with Mouvement des Entreprises de France, the country’s leading business organization and largest employer federation.
Following an invitation from President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr. Albanese is presently awaiting security advice on whether he may visit the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in a secure manner.