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Diplomacy
Opinion
Andrew Hammond
Andrew Hammond

Opinion | How the Aukus alliance can be boosted by Asian partners

  • The next phase of the Aukus pact could involve deepened cybersecurity and naval cooperation with other countries such as Japan and Canada
  • Despite questions over issues like Taiwan, the pact has room to grow and is considered important to UK, US and Australian leadership

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (from left), US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak walk together at Point Loma naval base in San Diego, California during an Aukus meeting on March 13, 2023. Photo: AP
Andrew Hammond
The Aukus security pact was originally announced by the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom to mixed reactions globally. But that didn’t stop then-UK national security adviser Stephen Lovegrove calling it “the most significant capability collaboration anywhere in the world in the past six decades”.
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The latest wave of interest in Aukus has come recently with speculation about Japan’s potential role in the alliance’s “pillar 2”. However, the world’s third largest economy is just one of several nations that have been considered as potential partners, along with New Zealand, Canada, South Korea and possibly Singapore.

UK defence secretary Grant Shapps has said that consultations on future cooperation between Aukus partners and other nations will begin this year. What assets might Asian allies such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore bring to the table?

Japan is planning to increase its military budget, which could make it the world’s third largest. South Korea has a capable military that has spent decades training and preparing for potential conflict with North Korea. Singapore has well-trained and hi-tech naval and air forces. Deeper relationships with these Asian nations might include more clearly defined security guarantees, enhanced training exercises, joint procurement of advanced weapons systems and stronger collaboration in cyberdefence.

Beyond Asia, countries including Canada and New Zealand – both members of the Five Eyes alliance with the US, Australia and the UK – are potential partners too. Former UK prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, have previously backed Canada for Aukus membership “to strengthen the West’s collective defences”.
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Johnson has even said Canada is the “most obvious next candidate”, in part because it had “fought, often heroically, for freedom” in the past. This week, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he had already held “excellent conversations” with London, Washington and Canberra about joining the Aukus alliance.

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