Australia and France have concluded a mutual military access agreement

Australia and France have entered into a mutual military access agreement, establishing a military partnership.

We are talking about access to military bases and educational institutions.

The agreement will allow Australian forces access to French bases in the Pacific region and will also open up Australian installations to France.

The plans were announced following talks between Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and her French counterpart Catherine Colonna in Canberra.

The agreement marks an improvement in the countries' relations following a diplomatic rift in 2021 over the cancellation of a French submarine contract by then-Australian government Scott Morrison. The government's decision to enter into the Aukus pact with the US and UK, under which Australia will buy and build nuclear submarines, prompted Paris to temporarily recall its ambassador from Canberra in protest.

Column noted to Australian journalists that Aukus was not a "pleasant" moment, but "we have decided to move on."

Wong and Colonna adopted a bilateral roadmap to improve relations in three areas: security and defense; climate influence and persistence; culture and education.

The French minister also raised concerns about China's military engagement with Australian naval divers in Japan's exclusive economic zone last month, as well as the standoff with the Philippines.