AUKUS Disrupts International Nuclear Non-proliferation System and Sparks off Arms Race

An international affairs analyst, Ri Jong Su, on Friday released the following article entitled "AUKUS crumbles international Nuclear Non-Proliferation system and sparks off arms race":

Recently the U.S. made public that it decided to sell 220 Tomahawk cruise missiles worth 895 million US$ to be mounted on destroyers and future Virginia-class attack nuclear-powered submarines of Australia. Britain also made it known that 3 billion pounds out of 5 billion pounds of defence spendings to be additionally expended for the coming two years will be allocated to AUKUS.

On March 13, the U.S. president and British and Australian prime ministers released a joint statement at the San Diego naval base in California of the U.S., the home port for the U.S. Pacific Fleet, to the effect that Australia will establish 8-nuclear-powered sub team with the investment of 245 billion US$, under cooperation with the U.S. and Britain, by 2055.

The nature of AUKUS is becoming clear as a product of "new Cold War".

Wrecker of International Nuclear Non-Proliferation System

According to the AUKUS nuclear submarine cooperation plan made public by the three leaders, the U.S. and British nuclear submarines will start regular entry into Australian port from 2023 and 2026 and they will be put under rotational deployment from 2027. From the early 2030s the U.S. will reportedly build three Virginia-class nuclear submarines to sell to Australia and when necessary additionally sell two more. It is also said that particularly it will officially hand over new SSN-AUKUS nuclear submarines jointly built with the introduction of ultra-modern technology of the three countries based on the British design, to Britain by the end of the 2030s and to Australia by the beginning of the 2040s.

The transfer of weapon-grade highly enriched uranium to non-nuclear state Australia by the U.S. and Britain, nuclear weapons states and signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, becomes apparent nuclear proliferation act. This is unanimous comment of the unbiased international community.

However, the U.S., Britain and Australia insist that the contested submarines are not loaded with nuclear warhead missiles and, therefore, do not contravene the international nuclear non-proliferation system.

Lurking behind this is the U.S. arrogance that the world's only superpower can do whatever it is determined, and the blind belief of the vassal states.

The arrogance and over-confidence of the U.S. as the world's first user of nuclear weapons and the world's biggest nuclear weapons state have reached the state of issuing a free pass to the nuclear club for those countries "close to it in terms of race and kindred" and which follow it. This leads to a big hole in the international nuclear non-proliferation system.

If this state is allowed, it is not hard to predict that either the U.S. hands over to Australia a nuclear missile-loaded submarine or there can happen anytime such "big thing" of Australia misusing highly enriched uranium whose original purpose is to be used for nuclear submarine.

Making public this plan, the U.S. president remarked "This first project is only beginning", which meant the expansion of AUKUS with other allies besides Britain and Australia in mind.

There is ample possibility for the AUKUS to be expanded to "other like-minded states" of the U.S. such as Japan and Canada which are so much envious of Australia's "windfall". In this case the international nuclear non-proliferation system will remain just in name only.

The situation shows that the U.S. oft-repeated international nuclear non-proliferation system is a tool for strengthening the exclusive nuclear weaponization of the U.S. and its allies.

Seed of New Arms Race

The end of the Cold War that came along with the disbandment of the former Soviet Union brought new trouble to the U.S.

China, Russia, South Africa, Brazil and other newly developing big powers emerged fast and the multi-polarization has become a world trend that cannot be ignored. This urged the U.S. to look for ways of maintaining its hegemonic position in increasing military expenditure and triggering off new Cold War.

The recent transaction for arming Australia with nuclear-powered submarines will reportedly cost a total of 245 billion US$, which will naturally stoke arms race worldwide, to say nothing of Asia-Pacific.

No country in the Asia-Pacific region eyes Australia situated in the middle of the ocean far away from it.

It is up to the Australian prime minister to explain taxpayers of his country about the squandering of fund running at an astronomical figure for the unnecessary purchase of the nuclear-powered submarines. But giving an understandable answer to Asia-Pacific countries about the reason behind the escalation of tension, creation of instability and triggering of arms race is unavoidable responsibility of the heads of the AUKUS states.

The situation proves that increased military expenditure by the U.S. and its allies has been the cause of regional or worldwide arms races in the last century and the present century.

The U.S. commenced Freedom Shield joint military drill simulating an all-out war against the DPRK from March 13 and staged the largest-ever Ssangryong combined landing drill with the involvement of nuclear carrier Nimitz strike group from March 20 to April 3, after five-year hiatus. It, at the same time, puts extreme military pressure on the DPRK, pushing the situation on the Korean Peninsula to the threshold of a nuclear war.

What can not be overlooked is the criticism against the DPRK made at confabs of the AUKUS heads held across the Pacific, timed to coincide with those exercises.

The British prime minister said "Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, China's growing assertiveness, the destabilising behaviour of Iran and North Korea all threaten to create a world defined by danger, disorder, and division," in a bid to justify the "necessity" of AUKUS. Noting that the AUKUS will contribute to the regional peace and stability, a high-ranking official of the U.S. State Department said that "We've seen a growth in challenges across the region posed by a host of countries, from the PRC to Russia to North Korea and elsewhere. And again, these challenges are not limited just to the Indo-Pacific, but beyond."

This indicates that AUKUS submarines can emerge in any places essential for maintaining the U.S. hegemonic position whether it is the South Sea of China or the waters off the Korean Peninsula.

Britain sent more than 40 Royal marines to Ssangryong combined landing drill targeting "occupation of Pyongyang" and Australia took part as an observer. This proves that AUKUS can be misused for the U.S. new aggression war attempt on the Korean Peninsula.

The security environment in the Asia-Pacific region daily exacerbating due to the U.S. and its vassal forces proves that the bolstered nuclear war deterrence of the DPRK is a fundamental guarantee for maintaining regional peace and stability and the balance of power.