Australia

Australia: Ex-Minister Launches Public Inquiry Into AUKUS Submarine Deal

Is this a vital shield for Australia's security or a reckless deal that surrenders the nation's independence?

4 days ago·Updated 3 days ago

Australia: Ex-Minister Launches Public Inquiry Into AUKUS Submarine Deal

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Above: Models of Rolls-Royce SSBN Dreadnought PWR 3 reactor pump jet propulsion and SSN-AUKUS PWR 3+ reactor pump jet propulsion submarines at ExCel London on April 14. Image credit: John Keeble/Getty Images

The Spin

Narrative A

AUKUS is a smart, necessary pivot for Australia — nuclear-powered submarines protect vital sea lanes that carry 99% of the country's trade, and gutting the deal would leave those supply lines dangerously exposed. Bipartisan support has held firm in Canberra, Washington and London, and the political signals from the US remain overwhelmingly positive. A crowdfunded side inquiry with no government authority undermines real defence planning and puts national security at risk.

Lisa Sophia on X The Conversation

Narrative B

AUKUS was always a rushed, poorly conceived deal scribbled together by politicians more worried about optics than Australia's actual strategic interests. Australians never consented to a financially unsustainable pact that turns the continent into a U.S. military outpost aimed at China. The Pentagon's own review is the wake-up call that Australia needs to forge an independent national security path instead of trailing a fading Atlantic empire.

KellieTranter on X Paul Keating