Latest news with #Aukus-class
The Guardian
25-07-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Australia and UK sign 50-year defence treaty despite US wavering on Aukus submarine deal
Australia and the UK will sign a 50-year treaty to cement the Aukus submarine pact, even as the major partner in the Aukus agreement, the US, wavers on the deal. The new treaty will be announced by foreign minister Penny Wong and defence minister Richard Marles — alongside British foreign and defence secretaries David Lammy and John Healey — in the wake of the annual Aukmin talks in Sydney today. The US is not a party to the new treaty, which will be signed on Saturday. While negotiations over the Australia-UK defence treaty were flagged before US President Donald Trump took power, the document's inking re-affirms UK and Australia ties in the face of American tariffs and the Pentagon's yet-to-be-completed Aukus review. While the details of the treaty have not yet been announced, it is expected to cover a wide breadth of cooperation between the UK and Australia in developing the Aukus nuclear-powered submarine — the first of which will be built in the UK, before manufacturing begins in Adelaide. 'The UK-Australia relationship is like no other, and in our increasingly volatile and dangerous world, our anchoring friendship has real impact in the protection of global peace and prosperity,' the UK foreign secretary, David Lammy, said. The bilateral treaty will facilitate greater economic co-operation between the two nations by improving both countries' industrial capacity. As part of the existing defence agreement, Australia will pay about $4.6bn to support British industry to design and produce nuclear reactors to power the future Aukus-class submarines. In a joint statement, Marles and Wong said the Australia-UK ministerial talks were critical to the nations' shared interests. 'We take the world as it is – but together, we are working to shape it for the better,' Wong said. Under the $368bn Aukus program, Australia is scheduled to buy at least three Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from the US from the early 2030s. The new Aukus-class nuclear submarines will be built first in the UK: Australia's first Aukus boat, to be built in Adelaide, is expected to be in the water in the early 2040s. But the planned sale of US-built boats has been thrown into doubt by the Trump administration launching a review into the deal to examine whether it aligns with his 'America first' agenda. The review is being headed by the Pentagon's undersecretary of defense for policy, Elbridge Colby, who has previously declared himself 'sceptical' about the deal, fearing it could leave US sailors exposed and under-resourced. The Aukus agreement mandates that before any submarine can be sold to Australia, the US commander-in-chief – the president of the day – must certify that America relinquishing a submarine will not diminish the US navy's undersea capability. Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion The US's submarine fleet numbers are a quarter below their target and the country is producing boats at half the rate it needs to service its own needs, US government figures show. Defence analysts believe the US is likely to re-commit to Aukus, but have speculated the review could demand further financial contributions – or political commitments such as avowed support for the US in a conflict with China over Taiwan – from Australia in exchange for the sale of nuclear submarines and transfer of nuclear technology. The UK's carrier strike group, led by the Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday during Talisman Sabre multi-nation military exercises hosted by Australia. It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997. The international task group includes five core ships, 24 jets and 17 helicopters, centred on the flagship aircraft carrier. Marles and Wong will on Sunday join their UK counterparts in Darwin to observe the group in action. UK High Commissioner to Australia, Sarah MacIntosh, said the strike group's arrival was a demonstration of commitment to the region and the strong relationship with Canberra. 'This is an anchor relationship in a contested world,' she said.
The National
14-06-2025
- Business
- The National
Where is scrutiny of UK's nuclear submarine plans?
In particular, there has yet to be any serious scrutiny of the proposal to build 12 nuclear-propelled submarines under the Aukus agreement, the military co-operation agreement between the US, UK and Australia. This scrutiny is especially necessary given that the Pentagon this week announced a review of its commitment to the agreement, raising questions about whether the billions of pounds committed by the UK Government are destined for the drain. The Aukus agreement's main aim is the material support of the Australian Navy in the Indo-Pacific, primarily by providing it with eight nuclear-powered submarines of the kind announced in the SDR. This means several of the 12 nuclear submarines will probably end up lurking around in the South China Sea, contributing nothing to the defence of the UK and raising regional tensions. READ MORE: Jeremy Corbyn says police 'picked on him' as Gaza protest case dropped No mainstream journalist or news organisation has questioned the Government over whether this is a sensible use of public resources or even a rational 'defence' strategy in any meaningful sense of the word. There has been no coverage of the fact the Government's watchdog the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) recently declared the manufacture of nuclear reactors to power the new Dreadnought submarines 'unachievable'. It gave the nuclear reactor project its lowest rating of 'red' in January of this year, as reported by The Ferret in February. While the IPA assessment rated the delivery of the new Aukus-class submarines as 'amber' ('facing significant issues requiring management attention'), it is widely assumed that the same nuclear reactors will power both the prospective nuclear-armed Dreadnought and Aukus submarines. In short, the Government's own infrastructure office just this year assessed that an indispensable component of all these submarines is not deliverable. This was hardly given a moment's airtime during the media furore on the SDR. (Image: PA) This alone is a serious indictment of Britain's elite journalists and indicates that their role has not been to question the Government's obscene military spending plans but rather to promote them. It therefore falls to citizens and civil society to raise the questions over serious doubts about the Government's costly nuclear plans. The Pentagon's review of its commitment to Aukus to determine if it aligns with the new administration's 'America First' agenda carries a weight of irony. Less than two weeks ago, UK Defence Secretary John Healey was espousing the supposed great benefits of the 'special relationship' with the US in terms of military co-operation and trade. Wednesday's development highlights just how little the UK gains from obsequiously aligning with US geopolitical interests, such as attempting to corral China in the Indo-Pacific. The unreliability of this relationship should compel a total reassessment of the predominant ideology about UK security, which currently prioritises being an arm of the US military in far-flung corners of the world over genuine domestic security. UK CND recently published an Alternative Defence, focusing on strengthening domestic social investment and a programme for common international security. The full report is on the UK CND website. The UK Government's irrational and incoherent military spending plans come at a time when the current generation of submarines based at Faslane are in an increasingly atrocious state of disrepair. Serious radioactive risk incidents at the naval base are increasing. The Vanguard nuclear-armed submarines are going on record-long assignments while their substitutes sit rusting in the repair docks. Crew are likely enduring awful conditions during six-month stints underwater, with some reports saying they ran out of food during the last assignment. Meanwhile, the Dreadnoughts that will supposedly replace these ailing vessels are unlikely to enter service for 10 years at least – if the reactors to power them can be built at all. The UK's nuclear superpower farce is unsustainable and a disaster waiting to happen. Those of us who understand this in Scotland must support the parties which oppose nuclear weapons in the run-up to the 2026 election, and keep up the pressure on Scottish parliamentarians to support the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. Samuel Rafanell-Williams is Scottish CND's communications officer
The Guardian
20-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
‘Vandals in the White House' no longer reliable allies of Australia, former defence force chief says
A former Australian defence force chief has warned 'the vandals in the White House' are no longer reliable allies and urged the Australian government to reassess its strategic partnership with the United States. Retired admiral Chris Barrie spent four decades in the Royal Australian Navy and was made a Commander of the Legion of Merit by the US government in 2002. He is now an honorary professor at the Australian National University. 'What is happening with the vandals in the White House is similar to what happened to Australia in 1942 with the fall of Singapore,' Barrie said. 'I don't consider America to be a reliable ally, as I used to. 'Frankly, I think it is time we reconsidered our priorities and think carefully about our defence needs, now that we are having a more independent posture... Our future is now in a much more precarious state than it was on 19 January.' Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email 'Trump 1.0 was bad enough. But Trump 2.0 is irrecoverable.' Barrie said it was 'too soon' to say whether Australia should end its multibillion-dollar Aukus partnership, but raised concerns about a lack of guarantee that nuclear-powered submarines would actually be delivered. He also warned about an apparent lack of a back-up option. Pillar One of the Aukus deal – which would see the US sell Australia nuclear-powered submarines before the Aukus-class submarines were built in Australia – is coming under increasing industry scrutiny and political criticism, with growing concerns the US will not be able, or will refuse, to sell boats to Australia, and continuing cost and time overruns in the development of the Aukus submarines. 'Let's define why we really need nuclear submarines in the first instance, given a new independent defence posture for Australia,' Barrie said. 'If they still make sense in that context, fine. But they might not. There might be alternatives. There might be alternatives with conventional submarines if we didn't want to go any further than the Malacca Straits.' Barrie's warning comes after former foreign minister, Bob Carr, said Australia would face a 'colossal surrender of sovereignty' if promised US nuclear-powered submarines did not arrive under Australian control. Carr, the foreign minister between 2012 and 2013, said the Aukus deal highlighted the larger issue of American unreliability in its security alliance with Australia. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'The US is utterly not a reliable ally. No one could see it in those terms,' he said. '[President] Trump is wilful and cavalier and so is his heir-apparent, JD Vance: they are laughing at alliance partners, whom they've almost studiously disowned.' The US Congressional Research Service has proposed an alternative under which the US would not sell any submarines to Australia; instead, it would sail its own submarines, under US command, out of Australian bases. When asked if he trusted Donald Trump earlier this week, the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said 'what sort of question is that?'. 'I mean, he's the president of the United States,' Albanese said. 'He's elected as the president of the United States. I'm the prime minister for Australia. He's entitled to pursue his agenda, of course. But I'm entitled to defend Australia's national interest and that's what we're doing.' Opposition leader Peter Dutton, speaking at the Lowy Institute this week, said 'the United States is still, and must always be, our most important partner'. But he criticised the Trump administration's decision to impose tariffs on Australia. 'We disagree with president Trump's decision to apply these tariffs: they're not just unjustified, they benefit neither Australia or the United States.'
The Guardian
19-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Bob Carr says Aukus a ‘colossal surrender of sovereignty' if submarines do not arrive under Australian control
Australia faces a 'colossal surrender of sovereignty' if promised US nuclear-powered submarines do not arrive under Australian control, former foreign affairs minister Bob Carr has said, arguing the US is 'utterly not a reliable ally' to Australia. 'It's inevitable we're not getting them,' Carr told the Guardian, ahead of the release of a report from Australians for War Powers Reform that argues the multibillion-dollar Aukus deal had been imposed upon Australia without sufficient public or parliamentary scrutiny. 'The evidence is mounting that we're not going to get Virginia-class subs from the United States,' Carr said, 'for the simple reason they're not building enough for their own needs and will not, in the early 2030s, be peeling off subs from their own navy to sell to us.' Under 'pillar one' of the planned Aukus arrangement, it is proposed the US would sell Australia between three and five of its Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines in the early 2030s before the Aukus-class submarines were built, first in the UK, then in Australia. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email However, the US has already forecast it might not have capacity to spare any of its Virginia-class boats, the Congressional Research Service instead floating a proposal in which: 'instead of … them being sold to Australia, these additional boats would instead be retained in US Navy service and operated out of Australia'. Carr said that alternative would leave Australia without Australian-flagged submarines and no control of when, and to where, those boats were deployed. 'It involves the total loss of any sovereign submarine capacity and, more than that, a colossal surrender of Australian sovereignty in general.' Australia, Carr said, needed to look past the 'cheerful flag-waving propaganda' of the proclaimed Aukus deal, saying the alternative likely to be presented by the US would leave Australia 'totally integrated in American defence planning and we'll be hosting even more potential nuclear targets'. Australians for War Powers Reform, a group that advocates for parliamentary oversight of the decision to send Australian troops to war, launched a report on Thursday morning arguing that the Aukus deal – signed by the Morrison government in 2021 and adopted by its Albanese-led successor – had been instituted without any public or parliamentary scrutiny. 'The public and the national parliament have been kept in the dark every step of the way,' the report argues. 'The Aukus pact has become a textbook example of how to disenfranchise the community, providing almost no transparency or democracy in a sweeping decision which will affect Australia for decades.' Aukus and the Surrender of Transparency, Accountability and Sovereignty argues the multi-decade, multibillion-dollar Aukus deal was presented to the Australian public without any discussion, consultation, and without parliamentary debate. The current forecast cost of 'pillar one' of Aukus – to buy US Virginia-class submarines and build Aukus subs – is $368bn to the 2050s. The report raises concerns over vague 'political commitments' offered by Australia in exchange for the Aukus deal, as well as practical concerns such as where and how nuclear waste would be stored in Australia. 'Aukus has no legitimate social licence because the public has been shut out of the process, and as a result, scepticism and cynicism have increased.' Dr Alison Broinowski, AWPR committee member and a former Australian diplomat, said Australia's agreement to the Aukus deal was manifestation of a structural flaw in Australia's democracy, where decisions to go to war, or to make consequential defence decisions, were not subject to parliamentary scrutiny or public debate. Broinowski said Aukus was acutely significant because of its size and potential consequence 'and yet the same failure to be frank with the people characterises every government this country has had, during every war there's been'. She argued Australia had no control over Aukus. 'We don't know what Trump's going to do and we have no control over what he does. And so we're left hoping for the best, fearing the worst and with absolutely no way of controlling or influencing what happens, unless we first get ourselves out of Aukus.' The Australian Submarine Agency's Aukus strategy, released this month, said the optimal Aukus pathway would see US boats sold to Australia 'from the early 2030s'. The strategy argues Australia's acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines would represent 'one of the most consequential endeavours' in Australia's history, 'at a time when our nation faces the most challenging strategic circumstances since the second world war'. 'An Australian submarine industrial base capable of delivering a persistent, potent and sovereign multi-class submarine capability is vital to the defence of Australia.' Welcoming a rotation of US marines to the Northern Territory this week, the defence minister, Richard Marles, said the Australian defence force continued to work closely with the US: 'The power of our alliance with the United States is a testament to our shared dedication to fostering a secure, stable and inclusive Indo-Pacific.' But Carr, the foreign affairs minister between 2012 and 2013, said the Aukus deal highlighted the larger issue of American unreliability in its security alliance with Australia. 'The US is utterly not a reliable ally. No one could see it in those terms,' he said. '[President] Trump is wilful and cavalier and so is his heir-apparent, JD Vance: they are laughing at alliance partners, whom they've almost studiously disowned.' Carr said America had been fundamentally altered by Trump's second administration and that American leadership of a rules-based international order was 'not returning'. 'The speed of America disowning allies to embrace a new world order where it cuts deals with Russia and China has been so astonishing that people are struggling to grasp it, especially in this country, where people just cannot contemplate a world where America treats so lightly its alliance with Australia.'
The Guardian
08-02-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Trump ‘very aware, supportive' of Aukus, says Pete Hegseth as Australia pays down $800m on submarine deal
The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, said Donald Trump supports the Aukus nuclear submarine deal, after Australia on Friday confirmed its first $800m (US$500m) payment under the defence pact. 'The president is very aware, supportive of Aukus, recognises the importance of the defence industrial base,' Hegseth said in opening remarks at a meeting in Washington with the Australian defence minister, Richard Marles, according to a transcript. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Under Aukus, Australia will pay the US $4.78bn to boost the capacity of the US submarine industry, and Washington will sell several Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia in the early 2030s, while Britain and Australia will later build a new Aukus-class submarine. Australia transferred the first $800m payment after a call between Marles and Hegseth on 29 January, Marles said on Friday. When asked at the meeting with Marles if the US would deliver the nuclear submarines to Australia on time, Hegseth said: 'We sure hope so. 'Part of what president Trump is committed to doing is cutting red tape, investing in the defence industrial base, ensuring that we stand by our allies and partners,' he said. Marles said Australia was 'pleased with the progress that we're seeing in terms of the rate of production, both in terms of construction and sustainment,' referring to the Virginia-class submarines. Marles is the first foreign counterpart hosted by Hegseth since his confirmation in the role. The pair is expected to discuss security in the Indo-Pacific region and the growing US military presence in Australia in addition to talks on Aukus. Formed in 2021, Aukus is aimed at addressing shared worries about China's growing power and is designed to allow Australia to acquire the nuclear-powered attack submarines and other advanced weapons, such as hypersonic missiles.
