China has reacted strongly to Australia’s intention to acquire a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement with the US and UK. Since the announcement in September, Beijing has taken a stance of lofty and profound opposition to this development, labelling it provocative, destabilising, betraying Australia’s slavish adherence to America’s strategic posture of containing China’s rise, weakening the barriers to the further proliferation of nuclear weapons in the Indo-Pacific and hinting that Australia likely intends to be among the first new nuclear-weapon states in the region.
