Australia has inflicted a personal blow

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Thebault told Australian Broadcasting Corp. in an interview recorded on Friday he found out about the US submarine deal: “Like everyone else, thank you to the Australian press.”

“We were never told of any substantial changes,” Thebault said. “There were many opportunities and many channels. Never has such a change been mentioned.

After the US deal was made public this week, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he told French President Emanuel Macron in June that there were “very real issues as to whether a conventional submarine capability” would meet Australia’s strategic security needs in the Indo-Pacific.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement Friday that the recall of the two ambassadors, at Macron’s request, “is justified by the exceptional gravity of the announcements” made by Australia and the United States .

Le Drian said Australia’s decision to abandon the purchase of phone number library submarines in favor of nuclear submarines built with US technology was “unacceptable behavior between allies and partners.”

Senior opposition MP Mark Dreyfus called on the Australian government to restore relations with France.

“The impact on our relations with France is a concern, especially as a country with important interests in our region,” said Dreyfus.