Daniel Hurst Foreign affairs and defence correspondent
Australia has ‘absolutely not’ committed to join US in event of war over Taiwan, Marles says

Defence minister says Aukus deal does not include arrangement to join US in a potential future conflict with China

Australia has “absolutely not” given the US any commitment as part of the Aukus negotiations that it would join its top security ally in a potential future war over the status of Taiwan, the deputy prime minister has said.

Richard Marles made the comment as he continued to defend Australia’s multi-decade plan to acquire nuclear-powered submarines, with help from the US and the UK, at a total cost of up to $368bn between now and the mid-2050s.

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11:11 193月, 2023
Amy Hawkins Senior China correspondent
‘Path of error and danger’: China angry and confused over Aukus deal

Deal is designed to counter perceived threat from Beijing but analysts in China say it could push region closer to conflict

When the UK, the US and Australia announced the details of their multibillion-dollar deal to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines on Monday, the reaction in China was both outrage and confusion.

The allies were “walking further and further down the path of error and danger”, said Wang Wenbin, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, on Tuesday. The Chinese mission to the UN accused the three countries of fuelling an arms race.

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19:46 163月, 2023
Daniel Hurst Foreign affairs and defence correspondent
Chinese official asks if Australia’s Aukus nuclear submarines intended for ‘sightseeing’

Multiple sources present confirm the remark was made, but it is unclear if it was made sarcastically

A Chinese embassy official asked Australian officials during an Aukus briefing whether the nuclear-powered submarines were intended for “sightseeing”, according to multiple sources.

Guardian Australia understands several others in the room found the intervention curious, because the Australian government has made no secret of the fact the nuclear-powered submarines are to be used by the Royal Australian Navy.

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15:59 163月, 2023
Daniel Hurst Foreign affairs and defence correspondent
Australia seeks talks with global nuclear watchdog to allay Aukus fears

Government has promised not to enrich uranium or reprocess spent fuel as part of the nuclear-powered submarine program

The Albanese government has requested formal talks with the global nuclear watchdog to allay any concerns Aukus could lead to undeclared nuclear activities in Australia or the diversion of enriched uranium.

The government has also invited senior officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency to visit Australia this year, attempting to head off a fresh campaign from China, which urged the body not to fall for “high-sounding rhetoric”.

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16:27 153月, 2023
Asia news | The Guardian
US, UK and Australia embarking on a ‘path of error and danger’, says China – video

China's foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told reporters that the US, UK and Australia 'are walking further down the path of error and danger'. The comments were made in a press conference in response to the Aukus partners' announcement of a multibillion-dollar deal on nuclear-powered submarines. The deal, made by leaders during a meeting in San Diego, will provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines in an effort to counter the rise of China in the Indo-Pacific. The Chinese government accuse the three countries of pursuing a deal 'for the sake of their own geopolitical interests disregarding the concerns of the international communities'

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22:14 143月, 2023
Amy Hawkins and Rhoda Kwan
China says Aukus submarines deal embarks on ‘path of error and danger’

Beijing accuses US, UK and Australia of disregarding global concerns with plan to build nuclear-powered vessels

China has accused the US, UK and Australia of embarking on a “path of error and danger” in response to the Aukus partners’ announcement of a deal on nuclear-powered submarines.

“The latest joint statement from the US, UK and Australia demonstrates that the three countries, for the sake of their own geopolitical interests, completely disregard the concerns of the international communities and are walking further and further down the path of error and danger,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a regular press briefing on Tuesday.

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18:34 143月, 2023
Daniel Hurst Foreign affairs and defence correspondent
Penny Wong hits back at China’s claim Aukus nuclear submarines will fuel an arms race

Foreign minister set to visit south-east Asia and the Pacific to reassure countries Australia does not seek to escalate military tensions

The Australian foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, has hit back at China’s response to Aukus, insisting that its criticisms of the nuclear-powered submarine deal are “not grounded in fact”.

In an interview with Guardian Australia, Wong also signalled that she planned to make further visits to south-east Asia and the Pacific to reassure the region that Australia does not seek to escalate military tensions.

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15:14 143月, 2023
Ben Doherty and Daniel Hurst
What is the Aukus submarine deal and what does it mean? – the key facts

The four-phase plan has made nuclear arms control experts nervous … here’s why

In a tripartite deal with the US and the UK, Australia has unveiled a plan to acquire a fleet of up to eight nuclear-powered submarines, forecast to cost up to $368bn between now and the mid-2050s. Australia will spend $9bn over the next four years.

From this year Australian military and civilian personnel will embed with US and UK navies, including within both countries’ submarine industrial bases. From 2027 the UK and the US plan to rotate their nuclear-powered submarines through HMAS Stirling near Perth as part of a push to step up training of Australians.

Embedded personnel and port visits: Australian military and civilian personnel will embed with the the allies’ navies. US nuclear-powered submarines will increase their visits to Australian ports, with Australian sailors joining US crews for training.

Submarine rotations: From 2027 the UK and the US plan to rotate one UK Astute class submarine and up to four US Virginia class submarines through HMAS Stirling.

Sale of US Virginia-class submarines: From the early 2030s – pending approval by Congress – the US intends to sell Australia three Virginia-class submarines, with a potential option for two more if required.

SSN-Aukus: A combination of UK submarine design and US defence technology will contribute to the development of the new SSN-Aukus submarine – intended as the future attack submarine for both the UK and Australia. Both Australia and the UK intend to start building SSN-Aukus submarines in their domestic shipyards before the end of this decade. The first such boat may enter into UK service in the late 2030s, but the Australian navy will receive its first Australian-built SSN-Aukus submarine in the early 2040s.

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13:55 143月, 2023
Amy Remeikis
BoM shifts to El Niño watch after La Niña officially declared over – as it happened

This blog is now closed.

Daniel Hurst is out of the Aukus lockup – here is his first take.

The main phases of the plan:

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07:40 143月, 2023
Aubrey Allegretti in San Diego
Size of UK’s nuclear submarine fleet could double under Aukus plans

First of new vessels expected to be seaworthy by the end of 2030s, with Australia receiving theirs in early 2040s

The UK’s nuclear-powered submarine fleet could double in size as plans were revealed for the new “Aukus” vessels to be based on a British design.

In a bid to counter the growing threat from China, the UK’s prime minister, Rishi Sunak, vowed alongside his US and Australian counterparts to stand “shoulder to shoulder” to protect peace in the Indo-Pacific given its implications for security across the world.

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06:42 143月, 2023
Aubrey Allegretti Political correspondent
Sunak heads to US to unveil latest news on Australian nuclear sub deal

Latest phase of Aukus scheme comes amid concerns about growing threat from China

Rishi Sunak will fly to San Diego on Sunday to unveil plans for supplying Australia with nuclear-powered submarines under the Aukus scheme amid concerns about the growing threat from China.

A major announcement 18 months in the making is expected when the UK prime minister meets his Australian counterpart, Anthony Albanese, and US president Joe Biden.

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07:30 123月, 2023
Katharine Murphy Political editor
Malaysian foreign minister says concerns remain about Aukus pact after meeting with Penny Wong

Saifuddin Abdullah points to risk of regional arms race but pledges increased trade and cooperation on cybersecurity with Australia

Malaysia’s foreign minister, Saifuddin Abdullah, has said that his country’s concerns about the Aukus nuclear submarine pact remain unchanged, after a meeting in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday with his Australian counterpart, Penny Wong.

Saifuddin told reporters he communicated Malaysia’s ongoing concern about the security deal between Australia, the UK and the US during a “very candid” discussion with Wong on her first visit to the Malaysian capital as Australia’s foreign minister.

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19:02 286月, 2022
Daniel Hurst Foreign affairs and defence correspondent
Caroline Kennedy praises Australia’s bipartisan foreign policy despite PM’s claims on Labor and China

Nominee as US ambassador says there’s a lot more to the Aukus deal than just submarines as she faces US Senate foreign relations committee hearing

Caroline Kennedy, the nominee for US ambassador to Australia, has said the Aukus security deal will provide “a lot of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific even before the nuclear-powered submarines are ready.

With Australia set to enter a federal election campaign within days, Kennedy praised the country for standing firm with “a bipartisan foreign policy” in the face of “Chinese economic coercion”.

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06:21 84月, 2022
Reuters
South Korea presidential contender vows to seek nuclear-powered submarines, months after Australia’s Aukus deal

Lee Jae-myung aims to counter North Korea threats and pledges to restart stalled talks between Pyongyang and Washington

South Korea’s ruling party presidential candidate said he will seek US support to build nuclear-powered submarines to better counter threats from North Korea and proactively seek to reopen stalled denuclearisation talks between Pyongyang and Washington.

In an interview with Reuters and two other media outlets, Lee Jae-myung also pledged to put aside “strategic ambiguity” in the face of intensifying Sino-US rivalry, vowing pragmatic diplomacy would avoid South Korea being forced to choose between the two countries.

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16:06 3012月, 2021
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor
As China threat rises, can Aukus alliance recover from rancorous birth?

Questions mount about pact’s ultimate purpose and implications for other Asean countries

It was initially seen as an audacious enlistment by Joe Biden of Australia into the 21st-century struggle against China, elevating the country in the process to a significant regional military power and finally giving substance to Global Britain and its tilt to the Indo-Pacific.

But since then the “ruckus” about Aukus, as Boris Johnson described it, has not stopped. If this was the start of a new “anti-hegemonic coalition” to balance China’s rise, it has not quite blown up on the launchpad, but nor has it taken off as smoothly as intended.

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10:47 2311月, 2021
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