Australia denies Taiwan quid pro quo with US for Aukus submarines: ‘absolutely not’

Australia’s defence minister insisted his government had given no assurances of support to the US over any future Taiwan conflict
The nuclear-powered submarines would protect vital trade routes through the South China Sea and contribute to regional stability, he said

Australia

Associated Press

Published: 10:31am, 21 Mar 2023

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Australia’s defence minister says his country has made no promises to the United States that it would support its ally in any future conflict over Taiwan in exchange for American nuclear-powered submarines.

US President Joe Biden and the leaders of Australia and Britain announced in San Diego last week that Australia would purchase nuclear-powered attack submarines from the US to modernise its fleet amid growing concern about China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific.

Australian critics of the deal argue that the US would not hand over as many as five of its Virginia-class submarines without assurances that they would be made available in the event of a conflict over Taiwan. Beijing says the self-ruled island, which split off in 1949 after a civil war, is obliged to unite with mainland China, by force if necessary.

A Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine of the type Australia is set to acquire from the early 2030s. Photo: US Navy Handout

But Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said his government had given the US no assurances over Taiwan.

“Absolutely not, and I couldn’t be more unequivocal than that,” Marles told Australian Broadcasting Corp.’s Insiders news programme on Sunday.

“I want to make it really clear that the moment that there is a flag on the first of those Virginia-class submarines in the early 2030s is the moment that that submarine will be under the complete control of the Australian government of the day and again, no one would have expected that to be any different. I mean, that is obviously the basis upon which this is happening.”

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Australia, like the US, has a policy of “strategic ambiguity” in refusing to say how it would react to an attack on Taiwan. Australia and the US have also shared a bilateral defence treaty since 1951 that obliges them to consult if either comes under attack but does not commit them to the other’s defence.

Former Australian Prime Ministers Paul Keating and Malcolm Turnbull are among the critics who question how Australia could maintain its sovereignty with such heavy reliance on US technology and military personnel under the submarine deal.

The Aukus deal – named after Australia, the UK and the US – provoked an angry reaction from China, which accused Australia of going down a “path of error and danger”.

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Marles said while the submarines could be used in the case of a conflict, the main intention was for them to protect vital trade routes through the South China Sea and contribute to regional stability.

“Nuclear-powered submarines have obviously the capacity to operate in the context of war, but the primary intent here is to make our contribution to the stability of the region,” Marles said.