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OPINION OCTOBER 01, 2021 | The Indian Eye 12

auKuS: the nuclear Submarine

deal of the new troika

The nuclear submarine business has overlooked some archaic alarms as far as the nuclear non-
proliferation regime is concerned. In India, too, some reports record displeasure over the submarine

deal on the grounds that India was denied similar deal in the past

rajiv nayan over the decision to sell/ transfer
of naval reactor technology. The
n 15 September 2021, US has been resistant to the idea
two members of the of transfer of technology to even
OQuad—the United its allies like France and Canada.
States (US) and Australia— Only the UK was an exception as
along with the United Kingdom a recipient but not as a seller. In
(UK) issued a joint statement to the past, the UK was prevented
create a higher “trilateral securi- statement noted: “Today, we acquisition. from transacting naval nuclear
ty partnership called ‘AUKUS’” embark on a trilateral effort of In the coming weeks or fuel cycle relating nuclear attack
to meet the new challenges of 18 months to seek an optimal months, more information may submarines to Canada. Now,
the 21st century. The statement, pathway to deliver this capabil- come out in the public domain the US has made the UK team
in the very opening sentence, ity. We will leverage expertise about the nature of submarine up in the AUKUS to deliver the
clearly mentioned that these from the United States and the transferred to or developed for nuclear-propelled submarine to
challenges are emanating from United Kingdom, building on Australia. The nuclear reactor Australia.
the Indo-Pacific region. the two countries’ submarine which is going to be used in the A section of the non-prolif-
The announcement made programmes to bring an Austra- submarine is also a matter of cu- eration community is expressing
the world talk. A number of is- lian capability into service at the riosity for the world. Moreover, reservations about the nuclear
sues ranging from geo-politics earliest achievable date.” the level of enrichment of urani- submarine transfer because of
to non-proliferation to contain- The joint statement, thus, um may further drive the discus- its proliferation potential. It is
ment of China have been circu- makes it clear that it is not an im- sion on it. feared that such a transfer to the
lating in discussions. Many won- mediate transfer of submarines, The reaction to the AUKUS non-nuclear state may increase
der whether the much talked which Australia has been seeking nuclear-propelled submarine the possibility of diversion of
about Quad Plus has started ma- for a number of years. For that deal manifests multiple dimen- fissile materials used in the sub-
terialising. Like the Quad, the purpose, it had a US$ 66 billion sions. The curious blend of marine propulsion for nuclear
AUKUS does not refer to China agreement apparently escalated geo-technology and geo-eco- explosive purposes.
as a challenge but the common to US$ 100 billion with France in nomics is synergised with Moreover, some opine that
understanding is that the prepa- the past. The acquisition of the geo-politics. All three are sup- there is an increasing use of
ratory work of maritime democ- submarines is supposed to boost porting and opposing each other HEU (Highly Enriched Urani-
racies to contain China in the “interoperability, commonality simultaneously. It ranges from um) in nuclear reactor so that
Indo-Pacific is being bolstered and mutual benefit” among the the breach of the commercial it becomes more “compact” in
through it. AUKUS countries. This would contract to the collaboration in operation. The increasing use of
The AUKUS as a geo-polit- make the UK not merely a col- the “prohibited technology” to HEU further raises the prospect
ical issue may have generated a laborator in development of nu- implications for the non-prolif- of its misuse for nuclear weap-
gentle debate and discussions clear-propelled submarines but eration regime. ons. Some academic activists
in the world, but the submarine also an active player in the In- Instantaneously, reactions in have also been arguing for a long
part of the agreement is being do-Pacific security theatre. print, electronic and digital me- period that the existence of a
considered a “bombshell” in As of now, Australia has very dia highlight that the AUKUS huge amount of HEU in subma-
many quarters. It invoked strong rudimentary capabilities in nu- will undermine the non-prolif- rine reactors all over the world
reactions not only from the clear reactor business. It has built eration regime. Some express increases the danger of mate-
Chinese establishment but also a 20 megawatt-thermal research apprehensions that non-nuclear rials falling into wrong hands.
from Biden’s friends and allies. reactor. For multiple reasons, it weapons states may compare the This line of thinking maintains
The non-proliferation commu- did not invest much in nuclear AUKUS to the India–US civil nu- that the nuclear submarine deal
nity also joined the debate high- research and development or clear energy initiative, and may will also dampen efforts towards
lighting the departure from the industry, though it has an im- get “more ammunition in sup- converting HEU into LEU (Low
long-standing American position. pressive reserve of high-quality port of a narrative that the weap- Enriched Uranium), thereby in-
The AUKUS pledged to uranium. It seems that it is now ons states lack good faith in their creasing the possibility of nucle-
facilitate the Australian acqui- serious about developing its nu- commitments to disarmament”. ar terrorism.
sition of the nuclear-powered clear industry, at least, to support Critics in the US and the As Australia had signed an
submarines. The 15 September the planned nuclear submarines’ Western countries look puzzled Continued on next page... >>

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