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AUKUS ‘transparency’ crucial, RI minister tells Australia
Indonesia has called on Australia to be transparent about its dealings with regard to AUKUS, its trilateral defense arrangement with the United States and the United Kingdom that aims to deliver nuclear-powered submarines to Canberra.
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A United States nuclear-powered submarine takes part in military exercises 130 kilometers off Cartagena, Colombia, on Feb. 28, 2022. (AFP/Colombian National Navy)
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ustralia should be clear and open about its activities in AUKUS, its defense alliance with the United States and the United Kingdom, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi told her counterpart Penny Wong in Canberra on Thursday.
Accompanied by Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and his Australian counterpart Richard Marles, the ministers met at the 2+2 Foreign and Defense Ministers’ Meeting to address increasing tensions in the Indo-Pacific, a point of concern Retno said must be dealt with using cooperation instead of secrecy.
“Indonesia reiterated the importance of AUKUS transparency and the commitment [to stop] nuclear proliferation, as well as adherence to the safeguards of the [Nuclear Proliferation Treaty] and the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency],” Retno said in a statement on Thursday.
“If not managed well, the rivalry [between China and Western powers] could well escalate into an open conflict. Indonesia invites Australia to work together and be a positive force in upholding peace, stability and prosperity in the region,” the minister said from Canberra.
In recent years, Western nations and their allies have sought to counter China’s increasing international assertiveness by forming defense pacts such as AUKUS and other coalitions. Under AUKUS, Australia is to be supplied nuclear-powered submarines to expand its monitoring capabilities.
While Canberra reaffirmed its commitment to avoiding acquiring nuclear weapons on Sept. 23, 2022, some neighboring countries, including Indonesia, are unconvinced that its procurement of nuclear-powered submarines will comply with international rules, such as those enforced by the IAEA.
In a meeting in Washington, DC, on Dec. 5 of last year, visiting Australian Defense Minister Marles and his US host Lloyd Austin said they were determined to “counter destabilizing military activities by the People’s Republic of China”, ahead of an AUKUS meeting.
