The pact signed among UK, US and Australia regarding the security of Asia-Pacific has drawn huge rebuff from France and its EU allies as to whether it was an effort to counter China, or actually an attempt to grab a multi-trillion dollar business deal dodging a close ally. China has condemned the agreement as ‘extremely irresponsible’ as it will let Australia build nuclear-powered submarines using US technology, including artificial intelligence. Any US step – either it is business or politics – now becomes a routine matter of condemnation by China, as a part of a new cold war.
Accusing the countries of maintaining a cold war mentality and ideological prejudice, the Chinese government has categorically said the pact “seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race”. But what is interesting is that – the submarine deal with Australia was an old issue. France got the contract two years ago to build a dozen of them. Neither the US nor the UK had dropped tenders to get the business deal. China at that time did not utter a single word. Now, the US has overlapped France snatching the contract showing comparatively better technology than France. What’s true is that France is one of the big arms suppliers in the world. Its ultra-modern fighter jets and bombers are parts of defence systems in many countries. It’s a nuclear power also. More interesting is that – to manage the deal US and UK have drawn a fear of insecurity in the Asia-Pacific region pointing fingers towards China.
Paris blasted the new Indo-Pacific security alliance between Washington, Canberra and London as a “stab in the back”. Although it is one of the three countries’ biggest defence partnerships in decades, the pact is nothing about security rather it’s a big business deal. That means doing arms business in this part of the globe. Those who keep information about defence technologies, have the idea that China is not afraid of such modern submarines acquired by Australia when it is openly challenging America’s might in land, sea and space. Its main annoyance is getting huge business deal by the US. Following this submarine deal, the political trust among the Western allies is shaken. An annoyed France said: American choice to exclude a European ally and partner from a structuring partnership with Australia, at a time when we (NATO) are facing unprecedented challenges in the Indo-Pacific region (from China), whether in terms of our values or in terms of respect for multilateralism based on the rule of law, shows a lack of coherence that France can only note with regret.
We also think that the relations among the NATO members are now in a fragile state. Now rich countries are afraid of losing their age-old businesses. It’s not a pact. It’s a competition among the arms producing countries to grab business where ethics do not matter.
