China slams Aukus, the Australia-US-UK military pact, calls it a ‘path of error and danger’
For Beijing, the pact will fuel the arms race and nuclear proliferation. Australia will have nuclear-powered submarines, not nuclear weapons, says US President Biden. Australians will buy three to five US submarines and develop a new type with the UK for US$ 235 billion. In China, observers note that Australia is sacrificing its economy for US containment of China.
Beijing (AsiaNews) – The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement today saying that the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom (Aukus) are on a “path of error and danger” ignoring the concerns of the international community.
Yesterday in San Diego, US, Australian and British leaders announced the details of the military pact signed in September 2021, considered a new tool to contain China's geopolitical rise.
Under Aukus Australia will be able to buy and build nuclear-powered submarines for its fleet using US technology and know-how, which has so far only benefited the United Kingdom.
The agreement provides for trilateral cooperation on artificial intelligence, cyber security, quantum and missile technology. The three allies will also work on developing hypersonic missiles and systems to defend against them.
For China, Aukus will fuel nuclear proliferation and an arms race in the Western Pacific. Joe Biden has stressed that the new submarines supplied to the Australian Navy will have nuclear propulsion, not atomic weapons.
Under the agreement, a small number of US and British submarines will be based in Perth (Western Australia) starting in 2027.
In the early 2030s, Australia will purchase three Virginia-class U.S. submarines, with the option of two more. Australia and the United Kingdom will also jointly build a new type of submarine with British design and technology from all the three countries.
The plan will cost the Australians about US$ 245 billion over 30 years, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, adding that it will create thousands of jobs in the country’s shipyards.
For The Global Times, Aukus is essentially arming Australia and turning it into a US asset against China. According to the mouthpiece of the Communist Party of China, Australia is sacrificing its economic interests for US strategic ones since China is Australia’s main trading partner.
In the recent past, China has imposed "punitive" duties on Australia following hostile positions taken by Albanese's predecessors.
Some Western observers share this view, noting that Australian exports to China fell by 13.1 per cent in 2022 over the previous year, while exports to the United States rose only by 1.5 per cent.
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23/09/2021 14:59
23/12/2021 13:26
