“I think if Australia goes down this route and builds nuclear-powered submarines and removes nuclear material from safeguards, it sets a very damaging precedent,” said James Acton, the co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Nuclear propulsion is different from nuclear weaponry, and the officials said Australia remains committed to remaining a non-nuclear weapons state. “It’s about advancing our strategic interests, upholding the international rules-based order and promoting peace and stability in the Indo Pacific.” “I do want to just underscore very clearly this partnership is not aimed or about any one country," one senior official said. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the announcement ahead of the president’s remarks. was sending to its adversary with the new partnership. officials who spoke to reporters ahead of the announcement, however, avoided any direct mention of China and sidestepped questions about what message the U.S. navigation in what the United States and its allies say is international water. defense officials have warned of a Chinese naval buildup that challenges U.S. The Navy’s three most powerful nuclear submarines were all deployed to the Pacific region over the summer. ![]() commanders have long feared could lead to an unintentional conflict. ships regularly engage in cat-and-mouse interactions with Chinese vessels that U.S. The United States sails its own nuclear-powered submarines in the Indo-Pacific region, and those and other U.S. The Chinese navy is thought to possess six nuclear attack submarines and many more conventional ones, with plans to expand the nuclear-powered fleet over the next decade. Nuclear-powered submarines are faster, more capable, harder to detect and potentially much more lethal than conventional-powered submarines. Biden initiated that call, but one administration official said Wednesday that the Australian submarine plan was not discussed “in any specific terms.” The president spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week. The effort comes amid rising tensions with China over a range of issues including military ambitions and human rights, and Biden has made it clear he views China as the country’s most significant global competitor. ![]() ![]() nuclear submarine propulsion technology, an agreement dating back decades and aimed largely at countering the old Soviet Union. Britain is the only other nation to share U.S. President Biden is set to announce Wednesday the United States will share highly sensitive nuclear submarine technology with Australia, a major departure from past policy and a direct challenge to China in its Pacific neighborhood.īiden will make the announcement at the White House alongside British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who will join the president virtually, as they unveil a new three-way defense alliance, which will be known as AUKUS. will share nuclear submarine technology with Australia as part of new alliance, a direct challenge to China
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |