France is immediately recalling its ambassadors to the U.S. and Australia in a backlash over a submarine deal, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Friday evening. Le Drian said in a statement that the decision, on request from President Emmanuel Macron (pictured), “is justified by the exceptional seriousness of the announcements” made by Australia and the United States. Earlier this week, the new partnership, which will be known as AUKUS, was revealed during a virtual news conference with President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. It will enable the three countries to share artificial intelligence, undersea capabilities and other advanced technologies and deepen cooperation on a range of defense capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region. One of the working group’s first initiatives will be to help Australia develop a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, which Australian media reports could result in that country dropping a $90 billion submarine deal with France. Le Drian said the cancellation by Australia of a big contract to buy French conventional submarines in favor of nuclear-powered subs built with U.S. technology is “unacceptable behavior.” #france #unitedstates #australia