Ah, the French. Nothing like insulting a multi-billion dollar customer. Boeing is blessed by who they have for enemies.
The real issue is that Airbus for some time has been relying on government subsidies and to discount their planes. This made sense for carriers who could buy Airbus products effectively below the cost of the planes. Boeing has sharpened its operation and gotten aggressive in sales efforts. Ultimately the EU business culture will find it hard to compete with a truly aggressive Boeing.