A few years ago, Australia signed a submarine deal deal with the French Naval Group, and Australia spent $66 billion to buy 12 Scorpio-class conventionally powered submarines from France, which are conventional powered versions of the French Navy's own Barracuda-class attack nuclear submarines. But what the French did not expect was that they were "backstabbed" by the two theoretical allies of Australia and the United States, and after the Americans promised to provide Australia with the technology to build nuclear submarines last year and provided them with advisers, Australia decisively tore up the contract with the French. Moreover, there was almost no guarantee clause in the contract signed by the two sides that year, so the Huge Order of the French was instantly lost, and they did not get much compensation at all.
(French Navy Barracuda-class attack submarine)
Although the angry French repeatedly protested and recalled their ambassadors to Australia and the United States, the French could do nothing in the face of absolute power suppression. But does this mean that Australia can successfully get nuclear submarines in the future? The answer is clearly no. According to the latest reports in the Australian media, just a few days ago, the TRUMP era of the US Assistant Secretary of Defense Randy Sherryford said that Australia may not get nuclear submarines under the AUKUS security agreement.
(Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense Randy Sherriffe)
The reason for this is that there are many "potential obstacles" to cooperation between the United States and Australia, first of all, the opposition of the US Navy, which has only provided nuclear submarine construction technology to Britain in the early days of the Cold War, but it is far from the extent that the United States has such a big package for Australia today, and the US Navy itself is very worried about technology leakage. Second, the political changes in Washington and Canberra are likely to bring doom to the eight nuclear-powered submarine cooperation projects that have been agreed between the two sides. Whether it is the United States or Australia, the senior political leaders of both sides must continue to make commitments so that the nuclear submarine program has a high probability of continuity.
(Currently the U.S. Navy's main attack nuclear submarine Virginia-class)
Leaving aside the U.S. Navy's own attitude, the political change of the authorities in Washington and Canberra is the biggest potential factor that could affect cooperation between the two sides, and within 4 years of Trump's administration, the "legacy" left by this person is almost irreversible for the entire American society, and racism and right-wing conservatism have filled the country. Moreover, biden's approval rating after taking office has fallen to a record, and Trump is likely to run in the next presidential election (if he runs, according to the prevailing sentiment of right-wing conservatism in the United States today, it is possible to re-elect the "understanding king"), once the US top level has another political change, whether the United States will continue to provide nuclear submarines to Australia is unknown. After all, Trump is a president who is mean to both his opponents and allies.
(Morrison and Macron)
Then again, if the United States refuses to continue to supply Nuclear Submarines to Australia in the future, will Australia be able to go back to the French Naval Group for Scorpio-class conventionally powered submarines? The answer is no.
(On January 19, the first 6 Rafale fighters were delivered to Greece)
French military enterprises that have been bitten by snakes for ten years have tasted the taste of being pitted many times, and now the French are actively protecting their basic arms sales (such as Greece, the first 6 Rafales in yesterday's Fahrenheit contract were delivered to the Greek Air Force), and as far as possible, the weapons that were reluctant to be sold out were sold to potential buyers.
(France is trying to sell more Rafale fighters to India.)
In the international arms market that has been competing into a Red Sea, France under the shadow of the monopoly of the United States, it is quite difficult to get a large order itself, and as a result, today they are thinking not only about improving their own product strength to win orders, but also to prevent the contract from being backstabbed by the Americans after signing the contract, for Australia, a country that "does not talk about martial virtue", obviously can not continue to cooperate, Australia can only pray not to "steal chickens and not become corrosive rice", so that they have broken the contract in vain, and finally both submarines can not get.