New Zealand may join Aukus pact’s non-nuclear component
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- 30 Mar 2023
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New Zealand’s government has confirmed it is discussing joining the non-nuclear part of the Aukus alliance founded by Australia, the UK and US.
“We have been offered the opportunity to talk about whether we could or wish to participate in that pillar two [non-nuclear] aspect of it,” said Andrew Little, the New Zealand defence minister. “I’ve indicated we will be willing to explore it.”
It comes a week after New Zealand’s foreign minister, Nanaia Mahuta, visited top Chinese diplomats, who raised concerns at the military tie-up between Australia, the UK and the US, which is centred on Australia receiving nuclear-powered navy submarines.
A second “pillar” to the three-part deal covers the sharing of advanced military technologies, including quantum computing and artificial intelligence.
Aukus nuclear submarine deal will be ‘too big to fail’, Richard Marles says
New Zealand has not been offered the chance to join pillar one, nor would it accept, due to its anti-nuclear position. Little said any Aukus membership “could not compromise our legal obligations and our moral commitment to nuclear-free”.
“[Aukus membership] would be about the kind of technology … needed to protect defence personnel,” he said. “Usually domain awareness, so surveillance technology, and radio technology that allows us to do that.”
Little met this month with Kurt Campbell, the US national security coordinator for the Indo-Pacific region. Read More…
