A senior Chinese diplomat has warned a New Zealand audience that Australia will not only acquire nuclear-powered submarines in the coming decades, but nuclear weapons.
And it was claimed Australia’s purchase of nuclear-powered submarines would mean “more nuclear arms race ... more nuclear tests, and nuclear pollution” in the Pacific.
China’s deputy chief of mission in New Zealand, Wang Genhua, made the claim about Australia’s nuclear ambitions during an event about the new defence pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States – dubbed AUKUS – on Monday evening.
“Australia is going to own nuclear-powered submarines. It will be almost necessary for them to equip nuclear weapons as the next step. The step just couldn't be prevented,” Wang said.
The AUKUS pact, announced in September, has Australia acquiring nuclear-powered submarines from the UK and US in the coming decades, in a bid to counter China’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region. The move grates against New Zealand’s anti-nuclear stance.
China, which has expanded its footprint into the contested waters of the South China Sea, was quick to condemn the AUKUS pact as irresponsible, “Cold War zero-sum mentality” that would undermine peace in the region.
The comments from Wang come as the fallout from AUKUS continues, with French President Emmanuel Macron accusing Australia’s Scott Morrison of lying about the deal.
Morrison, along with US and UK leaders, have insisted the nuclear-powered submarines Australia intended to acquire in the coming decades would only be equipped with conventional (non-nuclear) weapons, and the countries’ nuclear proliferation obligations will be met.
Wang told the audience at the event, hosted by think-tank Diplosphere, that the US and UK “must stop” efforts to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines.
“The promise of US or UK cannot be trusted at all. No international mechanism would restrict US or UK at all. They will just do as they would like to,” Wang said.
"There will more nuclear arms race across Pacific region, more nuclear tests, and nuclear pollution will take place in the region.
“It will be like opening a Pandora’s Box, releasing many, many nuclear evils.”
He said the Chinese government was ready for any “external challenge”, and believed it had rights to the South China Sea – though it wanted to negotiate with other countries which claim the territory
Allan Gyngell, president of the Australian Institute of International Affairs, said the Australia government did not want nuclear weapons, as with the US – as this would have “much greater” implications than sharing nuclear-power technology.
"If you're an island continent, like Australia, submarines which can get you further up and stay underwater longer, do matter in his defence terms.”
Morrison blindsided France by forming AUKUS and tearing up an existing contract Australia had with France to purchase diesel-powered French submarines.
Macron, the French president, asked by a Sydney Morning Herald reporter on Monday whether he thought Morrison had lied to him, said: “I don’t think, I know.”
Gyngell said the French response was “probably inevitable", but there had been nothing “quite as blunt” as Macron’s assertion in Australia's diplomatic history.
Michael Powles, a former New Zealand ambassador to Beijing also speaking at the event, said the forming of AUKUS would significantly complicate New Zealand’s relationship with Australia.
“But there are all sorts of reasons why no New Zealand Government will want to get seriously offside with Australia. Hence we put up quite a lot of nonsense, to be frank, without being seen to be getting too angry about it.
"It will complicate things first, but I don't think it will necessarily change very much.”
