France does not take offense after Australia's decision to cancel the "contract of the century" and to withdraw from a
deal
of 56 billion euros for the purchase of French submarines, ultimately abandoned in favor of US nuclear powered ships.
After recalling its ambassadors in Canberra and Washington, the Foreign Ministry cancels a meeting scheduled this week between Florence Parly, Minister of the Armed Forces, and her British counterpart Ben Wallace.
The "meeting scheduled this week in London will not take place on French cancellation," said a source from the ministry.
Diplomatic earthquake
In London, the Ministry of Defense assured that it could neither deny nor confirm this cancellation.
“The United Kingdom remains in conversation with its French counterpart on these meetings.
We continue to have a close and fruitful defense relationship with France, which remains a trusted ally, ”she said.
The submarine issue caused an unprecedented diplomatic earthquake between France and its three other allies.
The head of the French diplomacy Jean-Yves Le Drian had evoked Saturday a "serious crisis", denouncing a "lie, a duplicity, a major rupture of confidence" and a "contempt" on the part of these three countries with regard to from Paris.
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He had also directly scratched Britain, deeming it unnecessary to recall his ambassador to London as he had done with those in Washington and Canberra. “We know their permanent opportunism,” he quipped a few months after Brexit. "Great Britain in this affair is all the same a bit like the fifth wheel of the coach."