China says nuclear submarine deal between US, UK and Australia puts allies on a “path of error and danger”

China warned on Tuesday that the United States and its nuclear allies Australia and the United Kingdom were heading down a “path of error and danger” after they unveiled a deal in which Australia would buy nuclear-powered attack submarines. The purchase of the submarine aims to modernize Australia’s fleet amidst a growing number of submarines Concern about China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region.

President Biden traveled to San Diego for talks Monday with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak about the two countries’ 18-month-old nuclear partnership, which he dubbed AUKUS. The three leaders formally announced the plan as they delivered statements from Naval Base Loma Base at the entrance to San Diego Bay, flanked by American sailors and the destroyer USS Street in the background.

“Today, as we stand at an inflection point in history, where serious work to strengthen deterrence and enhance stability will influence the prospects for peace for decades to come, the United States could not ask for a better partner in the Indo-Pacific, where so much of our common future will be written,” said Mr. Biden.

partnership between the three countries, Announced in 2021gave Australia access to nuclear-powered submarines, which are more stealthy and more capable than conventionally powered ships, as a counterbalance to China’s military buildup.

“The recent joint statement issued by the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia shows that the three countries, for their own geopolitical interests, completely ignore the concerns of international communities and are walking more and more down the path of error and danger,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin on Tuesday.

China has argued that the AUKUS agreement violates the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. It maintains that the transfer of nuclear weapons material from a nuclear-weapon state to a non-nuclear-weapon state is a “flagrant” violation of the spirit of the Convention. Australian officials have fended off the criticism, saying they are working to get nuclear-powered submarines that are not nuclear-armed.

Mr. Biden emphasized that submarines “will not carry nuclear weapons of any kind,” and said the three leaders are “deeply committed to strengthening the nuclear nonproliferation regime.”

“The question is really how does China choose to respond because Australia doesn’t back down from what it’s doing…international studies,” said Charles Idle, senior advisor and chair of Australia at the Center for Strategy and Strategy. woo her. She seems to have gone entirely to the American camp.”

Australia is buying up to five Virginia-class boats as part of AUKUS. A future generation of submarines will be built in the United Kingdom and Australia with technology and support from the United States. The United States will also step up port visits in Australia to provide the country with more familiarity with nuclear-powered technology before it has such submarines of its own.

In a statement before their meeting, the leaders said their countries have worked for decades to maintain peace, stability and prosperity around the world, including the Indo-Pacific region.

“We believe in a world that protects freedom and respects human rights, the rule of law, the independence of sovereign states, and the rules-based international order,” they said in the statement released before their joint appearance.

“The steps we are announcing today will help us advance these mutually beneficial goals in the decades to come,” they said.

San Diego is Biden’s first stop on a three-day trip to California and Nevada. He will discuss gun violence prevention in the Monterey Park, California community, and his plans to lower prescription drug costs in Las Vegas. The trip will include stopping fundraising as he ramps up his political activities ahead of an expected announcement next month that he will seek re-election in 2024.

Mr. Biden was also scheduled to meet one-on-one with Albanese and Snack, an opportunity to coordinate strategy on the Russia war in Ukraine, the global economy and more.

The secretly brokered AUKUS deal involved the Australian government’s cancellation of a $66 billion contract for a fleet of French-built conventional submarines, sparking Diplomatic row Inside the Western alliance, which took months to reform.