Chinese official asks if Australia’s Aukus nuclear submarines intended for ‘sightseeing’

Multiple sources present confirm the remark was made, but it is unclear if it was made sarcastically

A Chinese embassy official asked Australian officials during an Aukus briefing whether the nuclear-powered submarines were intended for “sightseeing”, according to multiple sources.

Guardian Australia understands several others in the room found the intervention curious, because the Australian government has made no secret of the fact the nuclear-powered submarines are to be used by the Royal Australian Navy.

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ABC staff to walk off job next week – as it happened

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Acting prime minister and defence minister Richard Marles has spoken to ABC News Breakfast this morning after the $368bn announcement of the Aukus deal yesterday.

In response to the reaction from China accusing Australia, the US and Britain of embarking on a “path of error and danger”, Marles defends making a decision that is in Australia’s national interest:

We are seeking to acquire this capability to make our contribution to the collective security of the region and the maintenance of the global rules-based order.

And one of the issues within our region we are witnessing the largest conventional military build-up that the world has seen since the end of the second world war. And it’s not Australia who is doing that, but that shapes the world in which we live.

We’re completely confident these are in complete compliance with non proliferation.

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Liberal MP says search for Aukus submarine nuclear waste dump site in his electorate is premature

Rowan Ramsey ‘amazed’ government starting selection process in 12 months, given 33-year life of Virginia class reactor

Rowan Ramsey, the Liberal MP who faces the prospect of a nuclear waste dump in his South Australian electorate, has said he is “amazed” the government will begin the search in just 12 months for a facility that won’t be required for decades.

The comments come as green groups rally against a key component of the Aukus nuclear submarine acquisition: that Australia is required to dispose of the waste generated by its Virginia class submarines and the new SSN-Aukus submarine.

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Could a Donald Trump-shaped torpedo sink Australia’s $368bn Aukus submarine plans?

Technical risks abound in multi-decade plan for Australia to obtain nuclear-powered submarines. There are plenty of political ones too

On a day of hoopla surrounding the Aukus unveiling in San Diego, perhaps the most revealing moment occurred during a press conference 12,000km away in Canberra.

Given that Australia’s multi-decade plan to gain nuclear-powered submarines will require the support of successive US administrations, a reporter asked the Australian defence minister, Richard Marles, a very direct question on Tuesday: “Are you concerned that a future US president will tear it up?”

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China says Aukus submarines deal embarks on ‘path of error and danger’

Beijing accuses US, UK and Australia of disregarding global concerns with plan to build nuclear-powered vessels

China has accused the US, UK and Australia of embarking on a “path of error and danger” in response to the Aukus partners’ announcement of a deal on nuclear-powered submarines.

“The latest joint statement from the US, UK and Australia demonstrates that the three countries, for the sake of their own geopolitical interests, completely disregard the concerns of the international communities and are walking further and further down the path of error and danger,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a regular press briefing on Tuesday.

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What is the Aukus submarine deal and what does it mean? – the key facts

The four-phase plan has made nuclear arms control experts nervous … here’s why

In a tripartite deal with the US and the UK, Australia has unveiled a plan to acquire a fleet of up to eight nuclear-powered submarines, forecast to cost up to $368bn between now and the mid-2050s. Australia will spend $9bn over the next four years.

From this year Australian military and civilian personnel will embed with US and UK navies, including within both countries’ submarine industrial bases. From 2027 the UK and the US plan to rotate their nuclear-powered submarines through HMAS Stirling near Perth as part of a push to step up training of Australians.

Embedded personnel and port visits: Australian military and civilian personnel will embed with the the allies’ navies. US nuclear-powered submarines will increase their visits to Australian ports, with Australian sailors joining US crews for training.

Submarine rotations: From 2027 the UK and the US plan to rotate one UK Astute class submarine and up to four US Virginia class submarines through HMAS Stirling.

Sale of US Virginia-class submarines: From the early 2030s – pending approval by Congress – the US intends to sell Australia three Virginia-class submarines, with a potential option for two more if required.

SSN-Aukus: A combination of UK submarine design and US defence technology will contribute to the development of the new SSN-Aukus submarine – intended as the future attack submarine for both the UK and Australia. Both Australia and the UK intend to start building SSN-Aukus submarines in their domestic shipyards before the end of this decade. The first such boat may enter into UK service in the late 2030s, but the Australian navy will receive its first Australian-built SSN-Aukus submarine in the early 2040s.

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BoM shifts to El Niño watch after La Niña officially declared over – as it happened

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Daniel Hurst is out of the Aukus lockup – here is his first take.

The main phases of the plan:

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Australia will put nuclear safety ‘above all else’ as it builds submarines, vice admiral says

In interview with Guardian Australia, Jonathan Mead moves to allay concerns as Aukus partners prepare to announce detailed plans

Australia will put nuclear safety “above all else” as it begins the “generational challenge” of building and operating nuclear-powered submarines under the Aukus pact, the government’s top adviser has said.

Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead has moved to allay concerns – both at home and across the region – about nuclear safety as Australia, the US and the UK prepare to announce their detailed plans within days.

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UK, US or a hybrid? Intense speculation as Australia’s $170bn nuclear submarine choice looms

UK and Australian ministers have been hinting at a trilateral design for the eight boats, but all options are still on the table in Australia’s biggest defence purchase

Australia is set to within a couple of weeks learn some basic details about a program that could cost more than $170bn and will run for decades.

The opposition leader, Peter Dutton, this week warned against opting for a new UK design. For now though, the Aukus submarine program is a “black box”, says Tom Corben, a foreign policy and defence research fellow at the University of Sydney’s United States Studies Centre.

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Veterans paying for service-related healthcare as Australian GPs stop accepting rebate

Lack of timely and affordable medical care is exacerbating chronic health issues and causing mental distress among veterans, advocate says

Veterans are being left to pay for their own healthcare for service-related injuries and conditions as some GP clinics are no longer accepting the veteran white card.

The clinics argue the rebates are not high enough to cover the cost of services, but not getting timely and affordable medical care is exacerbating the chronic health issues of veterans and is causing mental distress, according to one advocate.

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Australia’s defence force faces once in a generation shake-up – but to what purpose?

Key strategists say military needs to focus on maritime and long-range strike capabilities to defend Australia’s interests across a wider region

As the Australian government considers the biggest defence shake-up in nearly four decades, it faces a blunt warning from a key strategist.

Australia’s security outlook has worsened substantially, warns the former defence official Paul Dibb, who carried out the landmark 1985-86 defence review for the then Hawke government. He believes the structure of the Australian defence force needs a significant overhaul to match the times.

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Strict new security rules for Adelaide nuclear submarine-building facility in bid to protect military secrets

Operators of Osborne naval shipyard ordered to guard against ‘deliberate or accidental manipulation’ of critical components

The Australian government has imposed strict new security rules at the Adelaide site where nuclear-powered submarines will be built, moving to reassure allies that sensitive military secrets will be protected.

The new rules require four operators at the Osborne naval shipyard, including those building the Hunter-class frigates and offshore patrol vessels, to guard against espionage and foreign interference.

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Australia news live: defence pursuing joint patrols with Philippines in South China Sea, Marles says

It comes as Anthony Albanese grilled on balance of power under Aukus after press club address. Follow the day’s news live

Chalmers highlights importance of sustainability of superannuation

Treasurer Jim Chalmers isn’t ruling in or out whether there will be any changes on superannuation tax concessions in the May budget.

I’ll tell you what I think. I gave a longish speech about this on Monday, where I said the priority [of] super is and should be nailing down the objective. For too long, the lack of an agreed objective has meant that our predecessors could mess with superannuation when it came to all kinds of ideological pursuits. We want to take that out of the system.

Ideally, we’d want to get some kind of broad agreement amongst the industry in the community … about what super is for, so that we can build from that. And as part of that speech, I pointed out the fact … that the cost of superannuation tax concessions will overtake the cost of the pension. That’s a fact.

Not necessarily.

I just think as part of a broader assessment of where our superannuation system is at and how we locked down the objective of super so that we can provide more certainty and security around its purpose, as part of that I acknowledged earlier in the week, that these concessions in the superannuation system, they’re not cheap. I don’t think it’s especially controversial to acknowledge that.

Well, as I keep saying, we haven’t changed their view. We haven’t taken any decisions.

We haven’t determined that.

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Australian ex-soldier alleges ‘sexual violence’ inflicted on him during secretive course

Damien De Pyle said he was forced to commit humiliating acts while suffering sleep deprivation during torture resistance training, court documents show

An ex-soldier who blew the whistle on a secretive torture resistance training program described acts inflicted on him as “sexual violence” and says he never would have consented to the course had he been properly warned of what he would endure, court documents show.

Guardian Australia last year revealed disturbing allegations made by former soldier Damien De Pyle about a training course designed to prepare defence personnel for possible capture by enemy forces.

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Kevin Rudd: Australia’s incoming ambassador to US says balloon saga threatens push to ease tensions with China

Former Labor prime minister says incident has created ‘diplomatic clouds’ that may overshadow efforts to stabilise relationship

The incoming Australian ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, has warned the Chinese balloon saga has created new “diplomatic clouds” that put at risk recent efforts to ease tensions between Beijing and Washington.

In a speech in Brisbane on Wednesday, Rudd also warned against expecting any “softening in China’s ideological cleavage with the west”.

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Australia politics live: Philip Lowe says RBA ‘still unsure’ how high interest rates will go during Senate estimates grilling

RBA boss tells Senate estimates about rationale for rate rises as Adam Bandt demands end to new coal and gas projects. Follow live

Around and around we go …

So CBA shareholders are to get a (fully franked) dividend of $2.10 for each of their share – 20% more than the last time dividends were sent out.

We reported strong financial and operational performance in our financial results for the six months ended 31 December 2022. Our cash net profit after tax of $5,153 million reflects the Bank’s customer focus and disciplined strategic execution. Our continued balance sheet strength and capital position creates flexibility to support our customers and manage potential economic headwinds, while delivering sustainable returns to shareholders. A fully franked interim dividend of $2.10 per share was determined, an increase of 20% on 1H22, driven by organic capital generation and a reduction in share count from share buy-backs. Despite the current uncertainty, your Board and management feel optimistic for the future and are committed to delivering for our customers and for you, our shareholders

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Richard Marles insists Aukus submarine deal will not erode Australia’s military sovereignty

Defence minister to tell parliament agreement with US and UK will not limit Australia’s independence on deployment decisions

Richard Marles insists Australia will always make its own decisions on military deployments, hitting back at Malcolm Turnbull’s and Paul Keating’s claims the Aukus deal will erode the country’s sovereignty.

The defence minister will tell parliament on Thursday that acquiring at least eight nuclear-powered submarines will “dramatically enhance” Australia’s sovereignty, rather than undermine it.

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US hails progress in getting Australia nuclear-powered submarines ‘at the earliest possible date’

Defence minister Richard Marles says Aukus partners will all benefit from ‘three-way ecosystem’ as he meets with US counterpart Lloyd Austin

Australia and the US have made “significant progress” towards getting Australia a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines “at the earliest possible date”, the US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, said on Saturday.

The federal government is set to announce its Aukus submarine plans by the end of March, amid mounting concerns that the US could struggle to provide them, and a push for President Joe Biden to fast-track research into submarines that use non-weapons grade uranium.

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Anthony Albanese says he would have likely signed up to Aukus if he had been PM at the time

Exclusive: The prime minister’s assessment pits him against Paul Keating, who has urged Labor to walk away from the controversial pact

Anthony Albanese says it is likely he would have pursued the Aukus agreement had Labor been in power during the Morrison era because the bonds between the three nations are enduring, and defence officials would have supplied the same advice.

The upbeat assessment during an interview with the Guardian’s Australian Politics podcast pits Albanese against Paul Keating, who has urged Labor to walk away from the controversial agreement with the US and Britain. Keating argues the plan to acquire nuclear-powered submarines will see Australia’s strategic sovereignty “outsourced to another state” – a critique echoed by the former Liberal prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

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‘We don’t have limitless resources’: Australian government prepared to scale back defence projects

Exclusive: While committed to an increase in defence spending, Labor’s Richard Marles refuses to rule out building first nuclear-powered submarines offshore

Richard Marles has signalled the Australian government is prepared to scale back some defence projects to fund others in a major shake-up, declaring “we don’t have limitless resources”.

The deputy prime minister said the government would weigh up “how best we can use the resources that we have to make sure that we have a defence force which maximises Australia’s capability”.

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