[Thread] So, President Biden and President Macron finally talked after days of severe diplomatic tensions between Washington and Paris. A few thoughts on the outcome of this much expected conversation and the next steps. 
First, the fact that the White House took the initiative of this call and that President Biden himself recognized that things could have been handled differently is positive in itself and was a first essential step to restore a dialogue with France.
With hindsight, Paris was right to take these strong diplomatic moves, often described as over the top, to make the Biden administration understand the gravity of the crisis (which was not the case at all at first).
As the constructive tone of the joint statements shows, the ultimate goal of France was not to break ties with Washington, nor to enter in a vicious circle of punitive measures toward the United States.
The purpose of France's fierce diplomatic response was to signal with utmost clarity to Washington that #AUKUS and the way it was secretly negotiated were contrary to the very basis of a strong alliance.
Now that the message has been heard, France managed to transform this crisis into an opportunity to have a more balanced and substantive transatlantic dialogue with Washington on defense and security.
Both leaders have agreed to launch "in-depth consultations" and will meet "in Europe" at the end of October to maintain momentum in this process. The French Ambassador will come back to Washington next week to start an "intensive work" with the Biden administration.
The joint statement includes a very strong (and needed) support from President Biden to France *and European* engagement in the Indo-Pacific region, in the Sahel and more broadly in the field of defense and security.
Now, this is *not* the end of the story but the beginning of a process. Rebuilding trust between Washington and Paris will take time, including at the inter-personal level.
Reassuring words from Washington won't be enough (remember the declaration of Biden at the G7 on the EU being a "vibrant entity" ?). France, and Europeans more broadly, will need a tangible demonstration of U.S. commitment to a trusted and more balanced partnership.
Many questions will need to be solved in this process: What does a transatlantic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific mean in operational terms ? How can Washington effectively supports the deepening of a stronger European defense ? What is the future of the cooperation in the Sahel ?
One final point: if this positive outcome is welcomed, we can only regret that a similar process with London and Canberra is not on the agenda. So far, both countries have refused, contrary to the United States, to initiate such dynamic.
This is concerning especially when we see the many challenges we will have to tackle with Australia and the UK. But this is the responsibility of the Australian and British governments to take first steps to restore a deeply eroded trust.
In short, the end of a tense diplomatic crisis (which could have turned worse in so many ways) and hopefully the beginning of a more constructive and balanced chapter in French-US and more largely transatlantic relations. [End]
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