China warns Britain to ‘think twice’ about Aukus pact and warns of nuclear proliferation risk
- Wang Yi tells British counterpart Liz Truss that the alliance with the US and Australia could ‘trigger an arms race and provoke confrontation’
- Meanwhile Truss warns in newspaper interview against UK becoming ‘dependent’ on China for sensitive projects such as nuclear power plants
Wang said the deal is the first time a nuclear-armed state has transferred a nuclear-powered submarine to a non-nuclear-armed state by providing highly enriched uranium, addding: “As it is not subject to international supervision and verification, it is bound to pose a serious risk of nuclear proliferation.
“China expresses serious concerns about the establishment of a tripartite security partnership between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia and the development of nuclear submarine cooperation”.
The security pact, announced in September, is widely regarded to be aimed at China with the US, Australia and other Indo-Pacific nations voicing concern over China’s military presence in the region.
Malaysia and Indonesia have said they are “worried and concerned” that Aukus may lead to an arms race in Southeast Asia, but other nations in the region were more cautious in making their responses.
Wang said China and the UK should properly manage their differences to ensure healthy development of their bilateral relations.
