{"id":26349,"date":"2016-05-03T10:00:48","date_gmt":"2016-05-03T00:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/?p=26349"},"modified":"2016-05-03T12:15:27","modified_gmt":"2016-05-03T02:15:27","slug":"the-contract-of-the-century-france-reacts-to-the-australian-submarine-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/the-contract-of-the-century-france-reacts-to-the-australian-submarine-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"The \u2018Contract of the Century\u2019: France reacts to the Australian submarine deal"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The announcement that French defence contractor DCNS had been<\/span> selected as Australia\u2019s international partner<\/span><\/a> to build RAN\u2019s new fleet of 12 submarines was big news in Australia. That\u2019s understandable considering the multi-billion dollar, decades-long contract. It was also big news in France. Combing through a range of French media outlets reveals several interesting trends.<\/span><\/p>\n

First, domestic politics is the focal point of French reporting. DCNS\u2019s victory has been trumpeted by the government as a massive success for France and its defence industry. L\u2019Elys\u00e9e, the office of French President Fran\u00e7ois Hollande, called the decision \u2018historic\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>historique<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>, and thanked Australia for its confidence in France and its companies. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls took to Twitter to describe the contract as a \u2018magnificent success for DCNS and our industry\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>magnifique succ<\/span>\u00e8<\/span>s pour DCNS et notre industrie<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>. In a radio interview for <\/span>Europe1<\/span><\/i>, French Minister of Defence Jean-Yves Le Drian struck a similar tone, stating that the contract would create \u2018thousands of jobs in France\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>milliers d<\/span>\u2019<\/span>emplois en France<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ministerial-level politicians aren\u2019t the only ones who are excited. Politicians in lower ranks from west and northwestern France, where DCNS has a large presence, were also<\/span> quite happy<\/span><\/a> with Tuesday\u2019s announcement. The former deputy-mayor of Cherbourg, home of DCNS\u2019 primary shipbuilding facility, called the deal \u2018a victory for France and for Cherbourg\u2019<\/span> (\u2018une victoire pour la France et pour Cherbourg\u2019)<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The reaction of the French media has also been positive. <\/span>Le Figaro<\/span><\/i>, one of France\u2019s most prominent newspapers, called the deal a \u2018mega-contract\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>m<\/span>\u00e9<\/span>ga-contrat<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>. <\/span>L\u2019Express<\/span><\/i>, another large newspaper, called the deal the \u2018contract of the century\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>contrat du si<\/span>\u00e8<\/span>cle<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a> for the French arms industry. Even the usually pacifist and left-leaning paper <\/span>Lib\u00e9ration<\/span><\/i> appears to be<\/span> relatively receptive<\/span><\/a> to the deal, as it bucks the recent trend of France selling arms to authoritarian states like Egypt and Qatar.<\/span><\/p>\n

DCNS\u2019s triumph is the latest (and biggest) in a string of international deals struck by various French arms manufacturers (many of whom are at least partially owned by the French state). Last month, French aircraft manufacturer Dassault agreed to sell<\/span> 24 Rafale fighter jets<\/span><\/a>\u2014plus missiles, maintenance, and training\u2014to Qatar in a deal worth <\/span>\u20ac<\/span>6.7 billion (approximately AU$10 billion). In 2015, Egypt was the main recipient of French arms. It bought<\/span> 24 Rafales<\/span><\/a> for approximately <\/span>\u20ac<\/span>5 billion (AU$7.4 billion), a<\/span> FREMM frigate<\/span><\/a>, and is still engaged<\/span> in talks for more purchases<\/span><\/a>. However, the big coup for Egypt was its acquisition of two French Mistral amphibious assault ships in 2014, after the French government cancelled the contract with the vessels\u2019 original buyer, Russia, following<\/span> outcry<\/span><\/a> over the country\u2019s role in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine.<\/span><\/p>\n

As in Australia, there has been much focus on the economic aspects of the deal in France<\/span>. Le Monde<\/span><\/i> is reporting that the deal will inject <\/span>\u20ac<\/span>8 billion (AU$12 billion) into the French economy and will \u2018mobilize approximately 4,000 workers at DCNS and 200 subcontractors over six years in France\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>En France, 4,000 personnes seront mobilis<\/span>\u00e9<\/span>es pendant six ans chez DCNS et ses deux cents sous-traitants<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>. However, it\u2019s unclear where those figures come from or what\u2019s meant exactly by \u2018mobilize\u2019\u2014it could refer to the creation of new jobs or to simply tasking current employees onto the new project.<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s also been a distinct emphasis on how the deal advances the Australia\u2013France \u2018strategic partnership\u2019. In his communiqu\u00e9, President Hollande called the deal a \u2018decisive step forward in the strategic partnership between the two countries\u2019<\/span> (<\/span>\u2018<\/span>Il marque une avanc<\/span>\u00e9<\/span>e decisive dans le partenariat strat<\/span>\u00e9<\/span>gique entre les deux pays…<\/span>\u2019<\/span>)<\/span><\/a>. The<\/span> 2016 Australian Defence White Paper<\/span><\/a> emphasises Australia\u2019s close defence relationship with France\u2014both in the Pacific and globally (see 5.83 and 5.84)\u2014but nowhere does the phrase \u2018strategic partnership\u2019 appear alongside France. Whether this proclaimed \u2018strategic partnership\u2019 evolves beyond France simply selling military equipment to Australia and into more cooperation on issues like terrorism and South Pacific security remains to be seen.<\/span><\/p>\n

Australia has had a turbulent history with French-sourced equipment. The RAAF flew Dassault Mirage IIIs from 1963 until 1988, although<\/span> design limitations hampered their operational utility<\/span><\/a>. More<\/span> troublesome<\/span><\/a> was the acquisition of the MRH-90 multi-role helicopter, which has only recently started to come into its own after many years of issues. Finally, the Eurocopter Tiger has been<\/span> plagued by problems<\/span><\/a> since its introduction, and is due for early replacement in the 2020s. So the DCNS submarine deal doesn\u2019t have many shining examples to follow.<\/span><\/p>\n

Submarines have seen the emotional and historical links between the two countries played up. Minister of Defence Le Drian<\/span> tweeted<\/span><\/a> that he had spent Anzac Day in the Somme with Governor-General Peter Cosgrove to commemorate the Australians who died there during World War I. The Governor-General then went on to meet President Hollande at L\u2019Elys\u00e9e for a<\/span> lavish state dinner<\/span><\/a> on the day of the announcement. While the timing may simply be a coincidence (his visit was planned well before the announcement was scheduled), it\u2019s interesting nonetheless.<\/span><\/p>\n

The French government went<\/span> all out<\/span><\/a> in support of the DCNS bid, and now it\u2019s basking in its success. French<\/span> Prime Minister Manuel Valls<\/span><\/a> has even jumped on a plane for an unscheduled visit to talk details with Malcolm Turnbull and the DCNS team. While the French media outlets offered loud support for DCNS\u2019s success in the CEP, they were much quieter on the challenges that lay ahead as the submarines are designed and delivered over the coming decades. As we all know, that\u2019ll be the real story.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The announcement that French defence contractor DCNS had been selected as Australia\u2019s international partner to build RAN\u2019s new fleet of 12 submarines was big news in Australia. That\u2019s understandable considering the multi-billion dollar, decades-long contract. …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":475,"featured_media":26350,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1470,291,1051,1203,223],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe \u2018Contract of the Century\u2019: France reacts to the Australian submarine deal | The Strategist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.aspistrategist.ru\/the-contract-of-the-century-france-reacts-to-the-australian-submarine-deal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The \u2018Contract of the Century\u2019: France reacts to the Australian submarine deal | The Strategist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The announcement that French defence contractor DCNS had been selected as Australia\u2019s international partner to build RAN\u2019s new fleet of 12 submarines was big news in Australia. 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