Canberra should heed nuclear-sub deal protest

With more than 2,000 people in Wollongong, New South Wales, staging a protest on Saturday against the Australian government selecting Kembla Port as a possible destination of nuclear submarines, all Australian politicians supporting the nuclear submarine deal with the United States and the United Kingdom should take the local people's objection to the AUKUS deal seriously.

The local people's organization, the Wollongong Against War and Nukes, has made it clear that it doesn't want the Australian government to turn Kembla Port into a nuclear submarine base and hinder the port's transition to renewable energy. Although it is yet to be decided, the Australian Department of Defence has listed Kembla Port as a probable nuclear submarine base.

Besides, as WAWAN has said, turning the port into a nuclear base will compromise Australia's national interests. The AUKUS deal, as claimed by Australia, the US and the UK, is intended to strengthen the ability of each country to support security and defense interests, but Australia does not have any enemy in the Pacific region unless it invents one.

The A$10 billion ($7.4 billion) to be spent on building a nuclear submarine base on the eastern coast of Australia will be a heavy burden on Australian taxpayers. Not to mention that the entire AUKUS deal costing A$368 billion will be a much bigger burden on them. The decision of a country without any enemies to invest an astronomical amount on nuclear submarines at the coaxing of the world's biggest arms dealer is nothing but ridiculous.

It was the previous government, led by Scott Morrison, which signed the AUKUS deal despite the opposition of people both in and outside Australia.

Now, one year into Anthony Albanese's term as prime minister, it is time the Australian government decided what is good for the country: to go ahead with the AUKUS deal, or annul the deal and expand its trade with its largest trade partner.