Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/16944185 (011105ZAUG22) Notable: AUKUS members sink Chinese complaints over nuclear submarines - Australia, the US and UK have hit back at China’s attacks on the AUKUS pact, saying it will be impossible for Australia to convert uranium fuelling the planned fleet of nuclear-powered submarines into weapons without ruining the boats
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AUKUS members sink Chinese complaints over nuclear submarines
Andrew Tillett - Aug 1, 2022
Australia, the US and UK have hit back at China’s attacks on the AUKUS pact, saying it will be impossible for Australia to convert uranium fuelling the planned fleet of nuclear-powered submarines into weapons without ruining the boats.
As a major United Nations conference on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons gets under way in New York, the three AUKUS partners released a working paper reaffirming a commitment not to breach international law through the transfer of radioactive material and to establish a verification process for the atomic watchdog.
“Partners are committed to doing this in a way that meets the highest possible non-proliferation standards including by providing complete, welded power units so that Australia need not conduct uranium enrichment nor fuel fabrication,” the working paper said.
The AUKUS agreement will lead to the US and UK helping Australia acquire as many as eight nuclear-powered submarines but – controversially – proposes to use highly enriched uranium in the boats’ reactors instead of low-enriched uranium.
Using low-enriched uranium, as navies such as France does, would require the reactors to be refuelled after 10 years or so, whereas highly enriched uranium lasts for the anticipated three-decade life of the submarine. The Morrison government dumped its conPost too long. Click here to view the full text.
