A few snippets from the background briefing on AUKUS last night from senior US administration officials, specifically with reference to France, Europe and the Indo-Pacific 1/5
Considerable emphasis was placed on this being about bridging European and Asian allies and combining efforts in the Indo-Pacific. UK was framed as a European power... "The only states pivoting to the Indo-Pacific faster than the US are in Europe" 2/5
It was framed as a unique set of circumstances facing an Australia that felt "isolated". That it was an independent Australian decision to move away from the French program and to explore this capability with US/UK, not something DC/London initiated at the expense of Paris 3/5
It was also stressed that in all the US exchanges with other Europeans (and Asians) ahead of the announcement, France was exceptional in its unhappiness. They had expected that more concerns might be raised by other partners but the only "challenging" response came from Paris 4/5
Hope was expressed that the understandably "bruised feelings" on the French side will ease over time... And the value for US foreign policy of the wider partnership with Europe in the Indo-Pacific was emphasized beyond that 5/5
(Comments on this would require a far longer thread... see inter alia @morcos_pierre @BrunoTertrais @AntoineBondaz @mtdtl for immediate reaction on France / transatlantic China & Indo-Pacific cooperation)
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