France's former foreign affairs minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, said he's pleased that Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison lost Saturday's election, showing lingering bad blood following the controversial termination of a $90 billion submarine contract.

"I can't but admit that Morrison's defeat suits me very well," Le Drian said from Paris. Morrison's actions showed "brutality and cynicism, and I would be even tempted to say even a measure of clear incompetence," Le Drian said.

Le Drian said he hopes that in the future France will be able to put in place, once again, "a frank and constructive dialogue" with Australia.

Le Drian made the remarks in Paris during a ceremony in which he handed over to his successor, Catherine Colonna.

Morrison, US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson last year unveiled a new security partnership that replaced Australia's deal with French shipbuilder Naval Group to build up to 12 submarines.

Le Drian and the French ambassador to Australia Jean-Pierre Thebault both described the decision as a "stab in the back," saying breaking the deal would hurt French businesses.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison lied to him at the Glasgow climate summit in November 2021. France then recalled its ambassadors to the US and Australia for consultations as part of a protest against the security deal.

Morrison conceded defeat on Saturday night after Australian voters chose Anthony Albanese's Labor Party, which is set to take power in the country for the first time since 2013.

Netizens believed that this showed there are still existing contradictions between the two administrations. "Perfect demonstration of the difference between two politicians" a netizen commented on Twitter.

"The mention of Morrison's lost at the end of Le Drian's term shows that France has not forgotten the submarine deal. Trust within AUKUS is at stake," another netizen said.

Global Times