France Calls Leaked Macron Text 'New Low'
3 Min Read
French ambassador to Australia Jean-Pierre Thebault says a private text message from the French president to Australia's leader has been leaked.
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French ambassador to Australia Jean-Pierre Thebault
French ambassador to Australia Jean-Pierre Thebault said the leaking of a private text was an "unprecedented new low".
"You don't behave like this on personal exchanges of leaders who are allies. But maybe it is just confirmation that we were never seen as an ally," he told Australia's National Press Club.
“Doing so also sends a very worrying signal for all heads of state: Beware, in Australia, there will be leaks.”
"And what you say in confidence to your partners will be eventually used and weaponized against you one day," Thebault tersely stressed.
What’s behind Macron’s leaked text?
The private text message from the French president to Australia's leader was leaked, France's ambassador to Canberra confirmed Wednesday.
Emmanuel Macron sent the message to Prime Minister Scott Morrison just two days before Australia announced that it had terminated a decade-old multibillion-dollar contract with France to build a new submarine fleet.
In the message, Macron had asked Morrison: "Should I expect good or bad news for our joint submarine ambitions?"
Reports said the leak could have been engineered by Morrison's office in retaliation for the "lying" charge.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison blatantly lied to him about a canceled submarine deal.
On the sidelines of the G20 summit that took place on October 30 and 31, Australian media asked Macron if he thought Australia's prime minister had been untruthful to him in private meetings.
"I don't think. I know," Macron said.
The French president left no doubt about his position, emphasizing the importance of mutual "respect."
"You have to behave in line and consistently with this value," he said.
Morrison defended himself, refuting Macron's claim and denying that he lied to the French president during a private meeting in June. Macron met Morrison at the G20 and spoke via phone call earlier this week, telling him that a "trust relationship" had been broken between France and Australia.
The "stab"
In September, Australia's prime minister abruptly terminated a decade-old multibillion-dollar contract with France to build a new submarine fleet.
Paris denounced the decision as a "stab in the back" and recalled its ambassador, who is only now returning to work in Australia.
The deal's cancellation sparked a bitter feud between France, Australia, and the United States.
