Paris, October 5 (BNA): US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is in Paris as the Biden administration seeks to repair the damage done to relations by excluding America’s oldest ally from a new Indo-Pacific security initiative.
Blinken met French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and National Security Adviser to President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday to try to restore trust between the two countries, particularly in terms of facing mounting challenges from China, The Associated Press reported.
The Biden administration has acknowledged that last month’s announcement of a trilateral Indo-Pacific agreement between Australia, Britain and the United States, known as AUKUS, was handled poorly. But it also indicated a desire for adjustments, even while suggesting that France’s anger is an overreaction.
France reacted angrily to the announcement that also spoiled a multi-billion dollar submarine contract with Australia, briefly recalling its ambassadors in Washington and Canberra in an unprecedented display of stupor.
French officials described it as a stab in the back by the Allies and said it would take time and work to overcome it. France also said it underscores the need for Europe to develop its security and defense plans.
Ahead of Tuesday’s meetings, Le Drian’s office reiterated that the “crisis” involved more than just France and was a disdain for the broader European Union, of which Britain is no longer a member. The foreign ministry said it was “in the interests of all Europeans regarding the work of our alliances and the participation of Europeans in the Indo-Pacific”.
Blinken is in the French capital for a two-day international economic conference, overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the American University of Kosovo that erupted on September 15 with the announcement of the project.
Ahead of his second visit to France, as foreign minister, but the first since the split, Blinken met Friday with French Ambassador Philip Etienne upon his return to Washington after Macron summoned him to Paris.
A fluent French-speaking Blinken, who grew up and went to high school in Paris, expressed disappointment at France’s harsh reaction to the American University of Kosovo. He and others noted that a certain degree of French anger is linked to French domestic politics and the changing dynamics within the European Union, which will soon see Angela Merkel depart as Germany’s leader after 16 years in power.
Blinken’s visit follows a September 22 phone call between President Joe Biden and Macron, who have agreed to try to calm things down and are due to meet in Europe later this month.
The apparent reason for Blinken’s trip to France, which was planned long before the AUKUS brawl, is to co-chair a Paris-based OECD ministerial meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday on climate change and security.
Former Secretary of State and current US climate envoy John Kerry will also attend the Paris talks, which will take place just weeks before the next UN-backed international climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland.
RAE