President Joe Biden came to office promising to restore competency to U.S. foreign policy after four years of Donald Trump’s diplomatic bomb-throwing.
But eight months after taking office, a series of missteps have angered allies, drawn criticism even from supporters and raised concern that Biden isn’t as sure-footed in international affairs as advertised. On Friday afternoon, France even recalled its ambassador, a dramatic escalation in tension between the two allies.
The most immediate reason for France’s displeasure was Australia’s decision to scrap a $66 billion submarine contract in favor of U.S. and U.K. technology. France recalled its ambassador to Australia as well, but officials were especially galled that the U.S. didn’t inform its oldest ally in advance that the deal was in the works.