Australian Senator Calls for Withdrawal From AUKUS, Slams US for ‘Destabilizing’ the Entire Region

Under the trilateral AUKUS pact unveiled last September, the US and the UK would supply high-end technology to Australia so that it can develop advanced nuclear submarines of its own. Critics of AUKUS have decried that Australia will operate nuclear subs despite being a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

Australian senator Jordan Steele-John on Thursday tabled a petition in the country’s parliament, demanding that Canberra pull out of the trilateral AUKUS pact and put a stop to the “integration” between the Australian and American militaries.

“With the support of over 26,000 of you we have taken a great step in showing the parliament that we will not help the United States destabilize our region and nuclearize our submarine fleet in the process,” the Greens’ senator representing Western Australia said.

The Greens have 12 senators in Australia’s 76-member Senate, making it the third biggest political force in the country’s politics behind the ruling Labor Party and the opposing Liberal–National Coalition.

Steele-John said that Australia was at a “vital decision-making point” in terms of how the country wants to “interact with our neighbors” at large.

The Australian senator said that the “unprecedented climate crisis” and “expanding wealth inequality” required global cooperation among the major countries.

“The AUKUS pact undermines all this because we can’t negotiate with one hand and point a gun with the other,” he remarked.

Steele-John also conceded that the tabling of the petition wouldn’t stop the Australian government from developing nuclear submarines under the AUKUS arrangement.

“I wish I could tell you that the tabling of this petition would be the end of it and the government will see the support for a more peaceful and independent foreign policy and course correct. The reality is sadly they probably won’t,” he remarked.

The Australian senator’s reservations about the AUKUS pack mirror those of several regional governments, which have accused the US of “inciting an arms race” in the region through the trilateral arrangement.

The charge against AUKUS has been led by Beijing, the perceived target of the trilateral arrangement.

At a quarterly meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna this month, Beijing unveiled a “position paper” spelling out its official stance on AUKUS.

"The AUKUS partnership involves the illegal transfer of nuclear weapon materials, making it essentially an act of nuclear proliferation," the Chinese position paper said.

IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said this week that policing the AUKUS submarine deal would be a “tricky issue” for the nuclear watchdog, since Australia was a signatory to the Nuclear non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) but would still be operating nuclear-powered submarines. These submarines are used by militaries but aren't necessarily equipped with nuclear bombs.