AUKUS is a security pact formed by the abbreviation of the names of three member states. The pact announced on 15 September 2021 between the USA, the UK and Australia, aims to support Australia’s nuclear powered submarines. Moreover, it aims to help develop and deploy its submarines and in fact contribute to the military presence of the West in the Pacific region (Euronews, 2021). It is claimed by China that the main purpose behind this military cooperation is to unite in the region against Beijing. Although the words of China do not come out of the mouths of the presidents of the three countries, this is perceived by Beijing as a counter-formation. Moreover, there are a few other countries that are uncomfortable with the AUKUS Security Dialogue. Among these countries, France was one of the most popular countries in the recent past.
There was a serious tension between Emmanuel Macron and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison. The cause of the tension is that Macron accuses Morrison of lying to him regarding the canceled submarine deal. Because on September 7, 2021, France recalled its ambassadors in Australia and the United States, describing the establishment of the AUKUS pact as a “backstab”, as Australia canceled the submarine agreement with France. Macron was then asked if Morrison had lied to him at the G20 Summit in Rome. When asked by an Australian journalist, Macron replied, “I don’t think you’re lying, I know that” (BBC, 2021). Thereupon, the reaction from the EU came without delay. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, stated that this treatment against France was unacceptable and also stated that Australia should apologize. The situation for China, which expressed its discomfort with AUKUS, was different from that of France. China’s foreign ministry spokesman, Zhao Lijian, critiqued, “The US, UK and Australia are collaborating on nuclear-powered submarines, which seriously undermines regional peace and stability, exacerbates the arms race, and undermines international nonproliferation efforts” ( ChingteLai, 2021). The Chinese Embassy in Washington DC, on the other hand, accused the three countries of having “Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice”. A newspaper from China’s hawkish wing reported that they denounced Australia and made them “an enemy of China”. Moreover, he had clearly given a warning and told Australia to avoid “provocation” or that China would “absolutely punish them mercilessly”(Hurts, 2021).
Finally, if we talk about how the countries of the Indo-Pacific region evaluated AUKUS, Taiwan expressed its satisfaction with this dialogue, unlike China, with the following words “a positive development for democracy, peace and prosperity in the region”. On the contrary, another regional country North Korea condemned the agreement as ‘extremely undesirable and dangerous’, stating that the actions would destroy the nuclear non-proliferation system, and criticized the US ‘hypocrisy that seriously threatens world peace and stability’ (NK News, 2021). When we look at the supports, we witness that comments are made as a result of the relations between the countries. Since AUKUS was a dialogue that began last September, it would not be right to say anything clear, so we will see what balances this alliance will change in the future.
RESOURCES
– Hurst, Daniel (17 Eylül 2021). “Australia dismisses China ‘outbursts’ and flags plans for more US military on home soil”. The Guardian(İngilizce). 17 Eylül 2021 tarihinde kaynağından arşivlendi.
– Euronews (İngilizce) – ‘Bilgilendirilmedik’: Yeni ABD-Avustralya savunma anlaşması AB’nin Hint-Pasifik eksenini gölgede bıraktı – 17/09/2021
– @ChingteLai (17 Eylül 2021). “Taiwan welcomes #AUKUS as a positive development for democracy, peace, and prosperity in the region” (Tweet) (İngilizce). 17 Eylül 2021 tarihinde kaynağından arşivlendi – Twitter vasıtasıyla.
– “North Korea slams AUKUS deal as ‘undesirable and dangerous’ | NK News”. NK News – North Korea News (İngilizce).
-“France calls UK a ‘junior partner’ in submarine deal as Germany warns it threatens Western unity”.
