Trump Return No Risk to Aukus, House Foreign Affairs Chair Says

(Bloomberg) -- Australia can be confident the US will not turn away from the Aukus pact in the event former President Donald Trump wins the November election, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said.

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“There’s broad-based support, bipartisan, both out of committee and out of Congress,” the Texas Republican said of the security accord among the US, UK and Australia. “I don’t see turning back, particularly with an agreement like this which has a commitment to the year 2050.”

His sentiments echo those of former Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who said in May that Trump expressed a positive opinion on Aukus when the two met. Under the accord signed in 2021, Australia is due to take possession of a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines in the 2030s.

McCaul said in an interview in Sydney on Friday that the idea for Aukus actually came in the first Trump administration.

He also played down concerns over deliveries of the subs after the Biden administration announced it would produce just one Virginia-class submarine in 2025, down from an anticipated two, raising questions over its ability to fulfill the commitment.

McCaul said the US defense industrial base is always under stress, particularly with wars in Israel and Ukraine. He expects production will speed up and delivery of the submarines to occur on schedule, pointing out both the US and Australia are putting significant money into the program.

The Biden administration this week determined that Australia and the UK have export control systems comparable to that of the US, fulfilling a key requirement to ease weapons trade under the Aukus partnership.

The finding removed a key point of contention with the defense industry and members of Congress as the US seeks to build on the three-nation defense partnership created to counter China’s expanding military activity in the Indo-Pacific region.

Asked about nervousness among some allies about Trump returning to the White House, McCaul said he does his best to reassure countries the US isn’t going to pull out of alliances like NATO. It just wants its partners to pay a fair share, particularly when it comes to defending their own backyard, he said.

“I think most Americans view Communist China as the greatest threat, and I think they’re fully onboard with the Aukus program,” he said.

“You know, Trump can be unpredictable, but there can be some deterrence from that,” McCaul added. “He does project strength and power.”

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