Posted on 09/16/2021 2:04:21 PM PDT by naturalman1975
When Scott Morrison met with Joe Biden and Boris Johnson at the G7 Summit earlier this year, it seemed like any other stock-standard diplomatic engagement - but there was much more going on below the surface.
The Prime Minister had been working in secret for nearly two years with a group of advisors to secure a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, allowing Australia to push back against an increasingly aggressive China.
The plan is thought to have been hatched as early as August 2019, with Mr Morrison asking a team of scientists, Navy top brass, engineers and other experts to look again at a deal Australia had signed with France to buy 12 diesel-powered subs and to see whether better options existed.
Ultimately, the task force concluded that going nuclear - an option that Australia has long-resisted due to the lack of a domestic nuclear industry and a commitment to nuclear non-proliferation - would be preferable to paying France $90billion for its vessels, after the cost ballooned from the $50billion first agreed upon.
Just a few years earlier in 2016 when Malcolm Turnbull signed off on the deal for France to build a dozen attack-class subs, the notion of going nuclear was not on Australia's radar.
.....
Australia in the past was resistant to building a nuclear-powered fleet as it would have required civil nuclear power capability onshore, but advances in military technology available via a deal with the US and UK mean that is no longer an issue.
At the same time an increasingly belligerent and hostile China motivated Mr Morrison to plan and set up the historic AUKUS military alliance which will see Australia get its hands on up to eight nuclear-powered submarines.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
To be frank, I didn't think Scott Morrison had the guts to do this. He's gone up in my estimation.
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“To be frank, I didn’t think Scott Morrison had the guts to do this.”
You mean that ‘that fella down under’?
Modern nuke technology is a quiet as any DE boat.
This is a big deal and I’m not surprised China is miffed by it.
Astute-class boats would be a good fit for Australia. It’s a proven design and there a four in commission so far. BAE Systems could license the design to the Australian yard and provide technical support. They could be cranking them out in a comparatively short period of time
I bet freeloading New Zealand is happy. We continue to protect them and they do squat. Remember anzus?
Life of ship cores so you don't need to have a refueling capability.
Yes, from what I’m hearing (I’m retired RAN), Astutes (or a variant thereof) is one of the most likely choices.
“I am really surprised - and really happy - that the Morrison government is committing to nuclear submarines for Australia.”
Agree, it’s a shocker for all of us, and THANK GOD it was basically done under Trump or Australia would have never gotten the deal (we’ll be lucky to our own nuke subs in a few years, given this regime).
I just hope things move fast there, as China is in a full-steam military expansion.
Back in the day, they wouldn’t let our boat into their ports.
Hopefully go with the straight Astute. "Variant thereof" implies new designs and extra time.
“Modern nuke technology is a quiet as any DE boat.”
No way!
I bet freeloading New Zealand is happy.
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Horse face has already said that no nuclear subs would be allowed in their territorial waters.
They said that decades ago. Love being protected though.
You guys need some of them. Just for that “On the beach” scenario.
The French Prime Minister was livid saying the US stabbed France in the back and further saying Biden was no better than Trump in his devious ways in subverting the sub contract they had with Australia. France was going to build non nuke subs. I am happy Australia decided to go with the US/UK contract to build nuke subs to thwart China. France does not have the product that Australia wants and they are blaming US/UK.This is analogous to France having old black rotary phones to sell while US/UK has 5G cells that the customer needs.
What anti-nuclear lobby? I thought all forms of protest have been shut off down under......
Article is vague on details, but it looks like these are attack subs. Being nuclear, that would make them very quiet and they could stay under pretty much indefinitely, or until the food stores run low.
That should make the Chinese very nervous not knowing where hunter killer subs may be. That is of course unless the Chinese have an inside channel to a traitor like Milley.
While there are currently some overly strict restrictions concerning Covid in Australia, they seem to be being ridiculously exaggerated in the United States. No, ‘all forms of protests’ have not been ‘shut off’. Some people seem to want to make things seems much worse than they are.
Morrison is a conservative.
The remaining human experience that has a functioning brain.
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