Is France an Indo-Pacific actor?
Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2025 3:43 pm
Yet France will almost certainly be the immediate diplomatic flashpoint. Paris questions the new three-way alliance (AUKUS) with regard to the contractual rights of its own diesel-electric submarine agreement. “It’s not over yet,” said Le Drian. “We’re going to need some clarification. We have contracts.”
In a joint statement with his defense counterpart, Florence Parly, Le Drian directed his anger directly at Washington.
“The American decision, which leads to exclude a European ally and partner like France from a crucial partnership with Australia at a time when we are facing unprecedented challenges in the Indo-Pacific region, whether on our values or respect for multilateralism based on the rule of law, signals a lack of coherence that France can only observe and regret, “said the two ministers.
For France, which was the first EU country to adopt an Indo-Pacific phone number library strategy in 2018 and then convinced Germany, and the EU as a whole, to follow suit, the latest developments could well lead to rethinking its strategic positioning.
“It’s a blow to Macron and France’s position as a major partner in the Indo-Pacific,” said Hervé Lemahieu, research director at the Lowy Institute, a Sydney-based think tank.
Benjamin Haddad, who heads the Europe Center of the Atlantic Council think tank, said: “It’s really amazing, and [there] will be an earthquake in Paris. … [It] will leave long-term damage to the French defense and political establishment – more than a “normal” diplomatic row.
An EU-based diplomat, however, said the European fallout would mostly be confined to France and that the EU’s Indo-Pacific strategy went well beyond military dimensions. “Germany, for example, tried to talk about trade diversification [away from China] as part of the Indo-Pacific strategy, “he said.
In a joint statement with his defense counterpart, Florence Parly, Le Drian directed his anger directly at Washington.
“The American decision, which leads to exclude a European ally and partner like France from a crucial partnership with Australia at a time when we are facing unprecedented challenges in the Indo-Pacific region, whether on our values or respect for multilateralism based on the rule of law, signals a lack of coherence that France can only observe and regret, “said the two ministers.
For France, which was the first EU country to adopt an Indo-Pacific phone number library strategy in 2018 and then convinced Germany, and the EU as a whole, to follow suit, the latest developments could well lead to rethinking its strategic positioning.
“It’s a blow to Macron and France’s position as a major partner in the Indo-Pacific,” said Hervé Lemahieu, research director at the Lowy Institute, a Sydney-based think tank.
Benjamin Haddad, who heads the Europe Center of the Atlantic Council think tank, said: “It’s really amazing, and [there] will be an earthquake in Paris. … [It] will leave long-term damage to the French defense and political establishment – more than a “normal” diplomatic row.
An EU-based diplomat, however, said the European fallout would mostly be confined to France and that the EU’s Indo-Pacific strategy went well beyond military dimensions. “Germany, for example, tried to talk about trade diversification [away from China] as part of the Indo-Pacific strategy, “he said.