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Aukus alliance
ChinaDiplomacy

Explainer | Aukus alliance: what is it, what does it have to do with China, and why is France angry?

  • The partnership’s founding provoked strong reactions from other countries, who cited security concerns, financial loss and betrayal
  • It will give Australia nuclear-powered submarines, but is seen as part of a broader plan

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A deal giving Australia access to American nuclear expertise has antagonised several countries, including the US’ own allies. Photo: AFP
Melissa Zhu
In mid-September, the United States, Britain and Australia announced a “historic” security pact to strengthen military capabilities in the Pacific, allowing them to share advanced defence technologies and equipping Australian forces with the know-how to build nuclear-powered submarines.
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The “Aukus” partnership – an amalgamation of the three member countries’ names – is seen as targeting China but has also angered several other countries. The US has scrambled to patch up relations with its oldest ally, France, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meeting French President Emmanuel Macron. China and North Korea have also voiced strong objections to the deal.

Why has there been such a ruckus over a trilateral defence agreement? Here is the lowdown.

What is the significance of the Aukus alliance?

Under the Aukus pact, the US and UK will help Australia build at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, the first time that Washington and London will be sharing sensitive nuclear submarine technology with Canberra.

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US, UK, Australia announce ‘historic’ military partnership in Pacific

US, UK, Australia announce ‘historic’ military partnership in Pacific
To begin the partnership, naval officials and technical specialists from the three countries will work together over the next 18 months to equip Australia with the technology to deploy nuclear-powered submarines. But given the complexity of the technology, Australia’s nuclear submarine fleet may not be operational until about 2040.

The biggest benefit of nuclear-powered submarines is that they are able to stay submerged longer, with enough fuel to theoretically run for years, which is an advantage in stealth attacks. Conventional submarines that use diesel-powered electric motors have to resurface regularly so that their batteries can be recharged, allowing them to be spotted more easily.

Just because submarines are nuclear-powered, it does not mean that they are carrying nuclear warheads. Nonetheless, the technology is sensitive because US and British submarine reactors use uranium that is enriched at 93 to 97 per cent, and anything above 90 per cent is considered “weapons-grade” uranium with potentially dangerous implications.

There are currently only six countries with nuclear-powered submarines – the US, Russia, China, the UK, France and India – with Australia set to become the seventh under the new pact. The US is the world leader in this area, with 68 nuclear-powered submarines, while Russia has 29 and China has 12, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based research centre.

Why do China and other countries care, if they are not involved?

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