Australia’s defence minister plays down concerns multidecade plan could be vulnerable to political changes in the US and UK
planning. He said he had felt the “gravity” and “responsibility” of this week’s announcement of sweeping, staged plans that involve Australian spending of up to $368bn by the mid-2050s.
“But in so many ways this transcends that [given] the sheer size of the decision to share this capability with Australia. And having taken the step of doing that, which we’ve done, puts all three countries in a position where it’s too big for it to fail on the part of any of those countries.” Despite Beijing’s strong criticism of the Aukus deal this week – which has included labelling it a cold war-era pact that would be dangerous for the region – Marles said Australia’s push for a productive relationship with China would continue.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Richard Marles hails Penny Wong as one of Labor’s ‘great foreign ministers’Defence Minister Richard Marles has hailed Foreign Minister Penny Wong for doing a “remarkable job” repairing Australia’s international relations. “We have never had a foreign minister who has placed the Pacific so centrally in terms of our engagement with the world, and that is profoundly important,” he said during a media conference on Thursday. “I think within a year of taking office, we can really say of Penny Wong that she is one of the great foreign ministers that we have had.”
Read more »
Albanese rebukes Keating over scathing remarks about Wong and MarlesThe prime minister says Labor party elder Paul Keating's strident criticism of two cabinet ministers only serves to diminish the former leader, but did not call on him to apologise.
Read more »
Assistant Defence Minister defends AUKUS against Keating’s attacksAssistant Defence Minister Matt Thistlethwaite says Australia should have the ability to “defend itself and its citizens into the future” after former prime minister Paul Keating expressed concerns about the deal. “These will be Australian crew, Australian commanded vessels into the future. We will maintain our sovereignty on these vessels into the future,” he said. “We can build the industrial capacity of Australia, high-industry, jobs in manufacturing,” Mr Thistlethwaite Sky News Australia.
Read more »
'Worst deal in all history': Former Labor PM Paul Keating savages AUKUS submarine dealFormer prime minister Paul Keating has taken aim at Australia's AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine deal with the United States and the United Kingdom, calling it the 'worst international decision' by a Labor government since conscription in World War I.
Read more »
Fiji backs AUKUS as Canberra soothes regional tensionsOne of the Pacific’s key leaders says he supports the AUKUS agreement as the Albanese government continues its diplomatic blitz.
Read more »
'Unhinged comments': Dutton blasts Keating's AUKUS remarksOpposition Leader Peter Dutton has labelled former prime minister Paul Keating's latest remarks on AUKUS 'unhinged comments' that need to be rebuked by senior members of the Albanese government.
Read more »