EU postpones trade talks with Australia amid submarine deal fallout

A general view shows the Naval Group site, the port and the skyline of the shipbuilding town of Cherbourg-en-Contentin, France, September 23, 2021. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia's Minister for Trade Dan Tehan said on Friday talks with the European Union over a trade deal have been postponed, as a row over Canberra's decision to cancel a $40 billion deal with France escalates.

Australia last month cancelled a deal with France's Naval Group to build a fleet of conventional submarines and will instead build at least eight nuclear-powered submarines with U.S. and British technology after striking a trilateral security partnership with those two countries.