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A powerful US Senator has restated his "proud" support of the AUKUS pact after he earlier warned the White House that Australia's push for nuclear-powered submarines risked bringing America's industrial base to "breaking point".
Key points:
- US Senator Jack Reed says he is "proud to support AUKUS"
- The comment comes after his earlier warning that the pact risks harming America's industrial base
- China says the deal is "unnecessary consumption of the Australian taxpayers' money"
Last week a letter written by the Democratic Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee and a former Republican colleague emerged publicly in which the two Senators urged the US President not to sell Virginia-class submarines to Australia.
"Over the past year, we have grown more concerned about the state of the US submarine industrial base as well as its ability to support the desired AUKUS SSN [nuclear sub] end state," Democratic Senator Jack Reed and the now retired Republican Senator James Inhofe wrote.
In the correspondence dated December 21, which was later leaked, the pair was quoted as saying "we believe current conditions require a sober assessment of the facts to avoid stressing the US submarine industrial base to the breaking point".
"We are concerned that what was initially touted as a 'do no harm' opportunity to support Australia and the United Kingdom and build long-term competitive advantages for the US and its Pacific Allies, may be turning into a zero-sum game for scarce, highly advanced US [Virginia-class submarines]."
Revelations of the concerns held by senior members of both major political parties in the United States prompted fresh assurances from the Albanese government that the nuclear submarine project remained on track.
On Tuesday Senator Reed went online to publicly declare his support for the "powerful partnership" that was struck in September 2021 by US President Joe Biden, along with former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison and former UK leader Boris Johnson.
"I'm proud to support AUKUS, the United States' historic military agreement with the UK and Australia," the Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman tweeted.
"This powerful partnership is central to ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific, dramatically improving the capabilities of our allies, and increasing our engagement in the region.
"Importantly, AUKUS also lays the foundation for the most significant integration of our undersea and other military capabilities ever achieved."
The Democratic Senator from Rhode Island added that he was "encouraged by the progress our nations have made".
"Successful implementation of AUKUS requires responsible oversight and a stable industrial base, particularly when it comes to our submarine programs."
The head of the Senate Armed Services Committee also argued that there was "broad consensus that the United States' greatest comparative advantage over China is our network of partners and allies around the world".
"Strengthening this network should be at the center of our strategy for the Indo-Pacific region, and AUKUS does just that."
On Tuesday, China's Ambassador to Canberra used a rare media appearance to publicly denounce the AUKUS deal, warning it would be an "unnecessary consumption of the Australian taxpayers' money".
'Australia a trusted and reliable partner'
Opposition Leader, and former Defence Minister Peter Dutton is standing by his belief that the United States should initially sell Australia two Virginia-class submarines as it works to acquire its own nuclear-powered fleet.
"We all have a great deal of respect for our American friends, they rightly point out the constraints that exist within their supply chain," he told the ABC's 730 program.
"Australia would come to the table with the ability to potentially increase that output, it may be that the three countries are looking at a common platform so there is the ability for the three countries to be involved in the production process.
"There are different ways in which you can slice and dice this issue, but it comes down to the reality that Australia is a trusted and reliable partner with the United States and the United Kingdom and I think the times ahead will demand that of us."