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Australian anti-nuclear campaigner and nuclear analyst Dave Sweeney has spoken out against the new $368 billion AUKUS deal as Australia prepares to buy three Virginia Class nuclear submarines and build a fleet of its own nuclear submarines.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, US President Joe Biden, and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made the AUKUS defence agreement announcement in San Diego, California on 14 March.
Under the deal, Australia will have access to buy an additional pair of nuclear submarines as an option. All submarines will have nuclear propulsion but be conventionally armed under a new SSN AUKUS classification.
The entire deal is expected to be completed in early 2030s pending US Congress approval and have the new vessels entering service with Australia in the early 2040s.
Australian Conservation Foundation (ACF) nuclear analyst Dave Sweeney said the Albanese government should rule out domestic nuclear power and the hosting of nuclear weapons to show clear commitment.
“ACF calls for the Albanese government to sign the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons to give the Australian public and our region a clear commitment that nuclear subs are not a precursor to nuclear weapons,” he said.
“The Prime Minister should rule out Australia facilitating or hosting nuclear weapons — ‘neither confirm, nor deny’ is not an acceptable position. Australia must not facilitate unlawful weapons of mass and indiscriminate destruction.
“The PM should also rule out domestic nuclear power; nuclear subs must not become a Trojan Horse for subsidies for a deeply controversial and contaminating energy source.”
AUKUS partners have committed to meeting their respective nuclear non-proliferation obligations, setting the highest non-proliferation standard and strengthening the non-proliferation regime according to Trilateral Australia-UK-US Partnership on Nuclear-Powered Submarines information published by the US government on 13 March.
The statement included details that as a non-nuclear state, Australia does not and will not seek to acquire nuclear weapons; and will not enrich uranium or reprocess spent fuel as part of AUKUS program.
Additionally, Australia will not produce its own nuclear fuel for its SSNs, as the United Kingdom and the United States will supply nuclear material in complete, welded power units that will not require refuelling during their lifetime.
The nuclear fuel received cannot be used in nuclear weapons without further chemical processing, which would require facilities that Australia does not have and will not seek.
Sweeney said the deal introduces new and significant safety risks that Australia has never had to deal with before.
“There are risks of possible future accidents in our ports and waters, especially given nuclear regulator ARPANSA’s assessment that emergency management arrangements in Australia ‘are not fit for purpose for a future with nuclear powered submarines’,” he said.
“Pacific nations, Indonesia, and others in our region have deep concerns about AUKUS. This arrangement further entangles Australia in the USA’s warfighting plans.
“It raises serious non-proliferation concerns relating to access to highly enriched weapons-grade uranium and sets a disturbing precedent for imitation and escalation.
“Australia would be the only nation without nuclear weapons but with nuclear submarines. It may embolden other nations to go down this path, increasing global nuclear risks.
“There is no clarity about how the government intends to manage the resulting high-level nuclear waste for the thousands of years it remains radioactive.
“As many Australians face daily cost of living pressures — and we all face the pressures of the climate crisis — this deal comes with a massive financial cost we will all bear.
“This whole process has lacked rigour or transparency and will cost Australians many billions of dollars that would be much better spent on social and environmental problems.”
