PROGRESSIVE INTERNATIONAL

Progressive International quoted an APLN report titled “A Deeper Dive into AUKUS: Risks and Benefits for the Asia-Pacific”.

Countries in the Indo-Pacific and East Asia have very specific reasons to fear the consequences of AUKUS, and specifically the provision of nuclear-powered submarines to Australia. The measure potentially opens the way for other countries to acquire nuclear-powered vessels from other nuclear weapons-possessing states, exploiting a perceived weakness in the NPT. In their 5 October 2021 report for the Asia-Pacific Leadership Network, Tanya Ogilvie-White and former UK Assistant Chief of Defence Staff Rear Admiral John Gower noted that the technology and resources to build and operate such vessels are generally out of reach of most states, and suggested that the willingness of the United States and United Kingdom ‘to assist Australia could encourage copycat behaviour, with potential suppliers such as China and Russia willing to assist other states’.

The original post can be accessed here.