US was ‘clumsy’ in Aukus submarine deal, Joe Biden tells France’s Emmanuel Macron

The two leaders had their first face-to-face meeting since the secret arrangement was unveiled in September, rattling Europe’s faith in its American ally

Biden did not formally apologise to Macron, but did concede that the deal to supply Australia with submarines was ‘not done with a lot of grace’

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French President Emmanuel Macron (right) and US President Joe Biden shake hands during their meeting at the French embassy to the Vatican in Rome on Friday. Photo: AFP

Published: 1:05am, 30 Oct 2021Updated: 2:48am, 30 Oct 2021

Meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday, President Joe Biden said America was “clumsy” in its orchestration of a secret US-British submarine deal with Australia, an arrangement that left France in the lurch and rattled Europe’s faith in American loyalty.

Biden and Macron greeted each other with handshakes and shoulder-grabs before their first face-to-face meeting since the deal was publicly announced in September, marking the latest American effort to try to smooth hurt French sensibilities. Biden did not formally apologise to Macron, but conceded the US should not have caught its oldest ally by surprise.

“I think, what happened was to use an English phrase, what we did was clumsy,” Biden said, adding the submarine deal “was not done with a lot of grace”.

“I was under the impression that France had been informed long before,” he added.

A view of an Australian Collins class submarine (front) and the UK nuclear-powered attack submarine HMS Astute (rear) at HMAS Stirling Royal Australian Navy base in Perth on Friday. Photo: EPA-EFE

The US-led submarine contract supplanted a prior French deal to supply Australia with its own submarines. The US argued that the move, which will arm the Pacific ally with higher-quality nuclear-powered boats, will better enable Australia to contain Chinese encroachment in the region.