Australia And France "Reset" Relations Following Submarine Rift

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has met French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris today to repair relations following an acrimonious dispute last year when former Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison scrapped an AUD$50 billion deal to buy French submarines.

• Albanese said after the meeting: "My presence here represents a new start for our countries' relationship."
• Macron said the meeting marks "a willingness to rebuild a relationship of trust between our two countries, a relationship based on mutual respect."
• Former French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian described Morrison's behaviour as of "unequivocal incompetence."
• The repairing of relations is seen as central to Australia's strategy to combat Chinese influence in the Pacific. Albanese said last week: “France, of course, is central to power in Europe but it’s also a key power in the Pacific.”