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Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #15 –
Mururoa atoll ...

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #17 –
Quote from: Lods – on
France has territories and interests in the Pacific.
We should be adding them to the 'alliance'
FAUUKUS ;)

Maybe we could also include an agreement with Japan for use of their flag.

Our logo could depict the japanese flag with the alliance acronym you created in bold across the top.

Gives off the impression of us being bent over, presenting and ready for action.  ;)

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #18 –
There had been talk recently of CANZUK, a new trading block made up of the old major commonwealth countries. Looks like that may have gone on the back burner?
Wonder how the new AUKUS will impact that and indeed future relationships with the EU and with NATO. We indeed live in interesting times.
Reality always wins in the end.
 

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #19 –
Quote from: cookie2 – on
There had been talk recently of CANZUK, a new trading block made up of the old major commonwealth countries. Looks like that may have gone on the back burner?
Wonder how the new AUKUS will impact that and indeed future relationships with the EU and with NATO. We indeed live in interesting times.

Very interesting times Cookie.
Also very dangerous times.

China lurks.
I spent most of my money on Women and grog.
The rest I just wasted.

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #20 –
This Sub move is more likely to strengthen alliances between Aust, Japan, Indo, Philippines, Fiji, etc., etc. They collectively hate China, it's just that they want the Yen so they say one thing and whisper another.
"Extremists on either side will always meet in the Middle!"

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #21 –
I'm not a big fan of people who take fake offense, but it seems to be France's way of doing business.

There is some significant irony in France accusing Australia of treating it badly, we should ask some Australian wine makers what they think of how France kyboshed Australian exports into the EU wine market, while supporting wine operations in Argentina and Sth America to do the very same, French owned operation of course! ;)

More fake than a soccer dive!
"Extremists on either side will always meet in the Middle!"

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #22 –
All of this mess on Turnbull and his mincing poodle Pyne for signing the idiotic sub contract.

Should have been US nukes from day one ... and armed IMO.

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #23 –
Quote from: capcom – on
All of this mess on Turnbull and his mincing poodle Pyne for signing the idiotic sub contract.

Should have been US nukes from day one ... and armed IMO.

Julia Gillard got into hot water for calling Pyne a mincing poodle  :)

As I understand the submarines contract between us and the French, there were several milestones at which the contract could be terminated if there were issues with progress/delivery.  Of course, termination, even if justified, brings about a penalty payment and we're going to ante up.  France clearly knew that the cost overruns and timeline blowouts had placed the contract in jeopardy.  Indeed, a French Parliamentarian raised the matter a month or two ago.

The problem with the subs contract, and most other defence purchases, is that we often go for untested technology like the F-35A Lightning, or ask for modifications that compromise functionality.  The overweight weapons system on the Army's Boxer Combat Reconnaissance Vehicles is an example of the latter.  The French subs may have taken decades to commission and may never have been fit for service.

Buying submarines 'off the the shelf' is a much smarter and more efficient way to go, particularly if we go for the cheaper, smaller UK Astute Class subs.  However, the problem with acquiring nuclear subs is that we will struggle to get and maintain the numbers of highly trained submariners required.  Our Collins Class subs are often inactive not because they're unreliable but because we can't get enough matelots to crew them.

It's still the Gulf of Mexico, Don Old!

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #25 –
Apparently the French were contracted to re-engineer nuclear submarines to be diesel powered.  Never done before so surprise surprise,  problems and delays.
Reality always wins in the end.

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #26 –
Quote from: cookie2 – on
Apparently the French were contracted to re-engineer nuclear submarines to be diesel powered.  Never done before so surprise surprise,  problems and delays.
You could also question why they took the contract, dumb in both parts.
The Ox is slow but I'm running out of patience.

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #27 –
Quote from: capcom – on
For once, she got something right. 

I don’t know about that, calling out Abbott’s misogyny was outstanding, although her failure to mention his sh1t-eating grin lost a few points.

And then there’s her innovative approach to tackling climate change.  As Boris Johnson said, humanity needs to grow up and take climate change seriously.  Gillard was aware of that well before the leaders of most developed nations.
It's still the Gulf of Mexico, Don Old!

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #28 –
A mate from the UK who has spent quite a bit of time as the MD of a French Technology company says Australia was lucky to get out of the Sub deal while it could. He said working and dealing with the French is a 24x7 effort managing degraded expectations and looking for future loopholes to close.

He thinks France must have invented the "Rubber Time" that is famous in Asian and Pacific Island regions, and that they have turned C'est La Vie into a way of life when it comes to over-promising and under-delivering!
"Extremists on either side will always meet in the Middle!"

Re: France recalls their ambassadors

Reply #29 –
You can rationalise and justify anything in this world, and there seems to be a few people barracking for Morrison, but Macron, Biden and Turnbull have all given a fairly honest assessment of him in recent days. People need to decide what their personal values are and decide whether this submarine fiasco coincides with these values.