Hawaii’s link with France dates back to the early days of the missionaries, when French priests arrived on our shores. Nowadays, there are growing strategic military and commercial interests in the region.

Perhaps the most recent hurdles in Franco-American relations relate to the Paris climate accords and a submarine deal between Australia and France that was torpedoed when Australia instead joined. in the USA.

Frédéric Jung recently took up his post as Consul General of France in San Francisco, one of the 10 American cities. It covers the Pacific Northwest and the Pacific Islands, including Hawai’i and Guam.

Jung arrived in the islands over the weekend for a welcome visit ahead of Veterans Day – and to talk about increased efforts to strengthen ties in this region.

He said he expects to see more emphasis on strengthening diplomatic relations in the Pacific region.

Highlights of Frédéric Jung’s interview

On France’s military relations with the State and the country

I represent the French Ambassador here in the Pacific and the Pacific Northwest. And I have come above all to honor, on his behalf, the Nisei veterans who took part in the 1944 French campaign and who received the Legion of Honor for their service and who contributed to the liberation of France. It was therefore very important for us to pay tribute to them. So I had the chance to award them the Legion of Honor of France.

As you know, France is one of the closest neighbors to the United States and Hawaii. We are local in the Pacific, if I may say so, with our presence in French Polynesia, in New Caledonia. These are French territories with 2 million French citizens. And obviously, we are a Pacific nation in that regard. And that is why our army is very present here in the Pacific and we have many French Navy ships calling in Hawaii, and in other American territories, like Guam, for example. And so yes, absolutely – we have excellent cooperation with our American counterparts. And I just met with representatives of the Pacific Fleet here in Pearl Harbor. And they say that the cooperation with their French counterparts is absolutely exceptional.

On the recent period of crisis due to an undersea agreement involving Australia, the United States and France

We have been through a period of crisis, if I may say so, in the last few weeks with the announcement by the United States of a submarine deal with Australia, which in effect ended a precedent. agreement on submarines between France and Australia. And that was seen as a big deception on the side of France, and so we had to engage in high-level discussions. And US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron spoke about it in September, and they met to discuss it in Rome on October 29 – because there was a need to really rebuild trust between these two former allies. You know, we like to think of ourselves as the oldest allies, we fought alongside the United States for the independence of a country. And we were very disappointed with the agreement on submarines, which ended our agreement. And so, therefore, it was necessary to restore confidence. And that’s what happened during this meeting in Rome. And they agreed on some very specific measures to, you know, build confidence in the future.

(Surprise) was a big part of the problem, which is that this deal happened without any notice from the United States to us. And we were really taken by surprise. And that has business implications, you know, for all of the workers who have been involved in this project and have been for the last few years. But it also has strategic implications. It wasn’t just a trade deal, but it was also a strategic partnership, and so it needs to be fixed, and it happened without warning. And that is why we must restore confidence with our American partners.

On the strong French community here in Hawai’i

We have 700 French citizens who are registered here in the Hawai’i Islands, and probably two or three times as many actually present and it is very important that the consulate also contacts them and comes to see them. Here we have an exceptional honorary consul, Guillaume Maman, who is the daily face of the French Consulate locally. But it is very important that as Consul General, I come regularly to Hawai’i to meet this French community – to also hear, you know, their concerns, their challenges, and that I contribute to a good dialogue with its community.

In addition to the military and political discussions just mentioned, let me also mention the commercial ties we have. French companies are in fact the second largest foreign employer for jobs here in Hawaii. French companies are therefore themselves very important to the economy of Hawai’i, of the state of Hawai’i. And beyond that … we have very strong cultural exchanges. Obviously, Honolulu, Waikiki all these names mean a lot and surfing means a lot to the French. But next to that, we have this festival, which you mentioned, which takes place every year, which allows Hawaiian culture to come to France.

On lifting restrictions for vaccinated travelers entering the United States

On the business and cultural side, things will probably increase further, and just a parenthesis – it’s a great relief for all those French citizens who were here, because for those who did not have American nationality or the card. green, they weren’t able to go to France and come back here to Hawai’i. This has therefore created many difficult humanitarian situations. Lifting a travel ban is therefore a very important thing that I really wanted to highlight. I have no doubts that commercial ties and cultural ties will grow stronger now that we have a political and strategic way forward between President Macron and President Biden, I am confident that will move forward as well. And once again, France really wants to do like the United States by strengthening its presence in the Pacific, by its service to its territories, and by its military presence, given the challenges we face in this geographical part of the world. .

This interview aired on The Conversation on November 10, 2021.