BLUF
Former Australian Defence Minister and ambassador to the United States, Kim Beazley, argues that AUKUS is critical to Australia's survival; and ensuring its effectiveness involves Australia having the same type of weapons systems as the USA.Summary
This article by Kim Beazley, writing for ASPI, makes the following points:
- Due to the efficiency of nuclear-powered subs, the Chinese are building SSNs* at a relatively rapid rate.
- Australia acquiring SSNs should be a significant deterrent to regional threats.
- China's suggestion that Australia's sovereignty is impinged on by acquiring U.S. SSNs is incorrect.
*SSN is a U.S. Navy hull classification "Submarine, Nuclear-powered" used throughout NATO.
References
Recent Runway Posts related to this topic:
- The Land Down Under the sea: AUKUS is about submarines, not bombers | The Runway (airforce.gov.au)
- Australia’s submarine acquisition is about deterrence, not aggression | The Runway (airforce.gov.au)
References from the Web:
- MAR 2023 How Australia would actually use submarines in a war (in four maps)—AFR
- APR 2023 Ignore the AUKUS hand-wringers, we need these subs for sea-bed battles: Navy chief—SMH
Source Information:
- Article Source: https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/
- Media Check: ASPI - About Credibility Rating: HIGH CREDIBILITY
- RAAF RUNWAY: RATIONALE, GUIDELINES, LEARNING OUTCOMES, ETC.
