A French-US Truce in Rome?
3 Min Read
After the tensions seen in US-French relations last month after the Aukus row, both countries' presidents showed an apparent truce.
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Macron has been pushing for the creation of an EU defense force that works alongside but outside NATO
The French-US truce came to light in Rome on Friday, after a meeting between US President Joe Biden and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, following a friendly handshake and statements on their partnership, following the AUKUS row.
“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.”
Biden and Macron met at the Villa Bonaparte, the French embassy to the Vatican, which a French diplomat said was a significant mark of goodwill from Biden. France, Biden said, "is an extremely, extremely valued partner - extremely - and a power in and of itself."
On his part, Macron welcomed the tangible decisions taken or announced since the beginning of the diplomatic crisis in September, which allowed for trust-building between the two countries.
France had been looking to secure commitments from Washington on European defense and intervention in the Sahel, while also allowing for a push for closer EU defense cooperation, and the creation of a joint defense force that would operate alongside, but outside of NATO.
A US Sign
The White House announced that a statement will be released at the conclusion of the meeting between the two presidents.
Washington was surprised by France's angry reaction after the announcement of the AUKUS alliance between the US, Australia, and the UK in the Indo-Pacific region.
In addition to not being consulted, Paris felt a great deal of disappointment from the preliminary result of this partnership, which was Australia canceling a large submarine contract with France.
Macron waited a week after France recalled its ambassador to Washington before speaking with Biden over the phone on September 22nd, which allowed room for a decline in tensions. The two presidents then launched a deep process of consultations to restore the badly damaged trust between the two allies.
Before meeting with the French President, Biden, who is looking to strengthen US-European relations, which were damaged by his predecessor Donald Trump, met with Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, where both stressed the necessity to develop European defense, according to a statement by the Italian government.
G20 and COP26
These meetings were held a day before the G20 summit, which is set to take place on Saturday and Sunday in Rome and will be headed by Italy.
This summit is expected to announce an agreement on a minimum tax to be imposed on international corporations, but some doubts have arisen on the capability of announcing strong climate commitments before the COP26 conference in Glasgow, Scotland, next week.
