AUKUS: A new catalyst for the arms race in the Indo-Pacific region – CGTN
Seymur Mammadov – Opinion 14:53, 15-Apr-2022
Editor’s note: Seymur Mammadov is the director of the international expert club EurAsiaAz and editor-in-chief of Azerbaijan news agency Baku Tribune. The article reflects the author’s opinions and not necessarily those of CGTN.
Last September, the U.S. and UK said they would help Australia build nuclear submarines. The three countries also pledged to cooperate in areas ranging from cyber capabilities to quantum technologies. Now these allies, having not yet achieved their originally-stated goals with the construction of nuclear submarines, have agreed to cooperate in the development of hypersonic weapons within the military bloc AUKUS. I wonder why such a rush? Why is the U.S. deliberately provoking an arms race in the Indo-Pacific region?
No one doubts that the main reason for the creation of AUKUS is to contain China’s political and military potential in the Indo-Pacific region. The United States is currently taking certain practical steps in this direction. For example, the United States (today) is in search of new allies and partners, forging alliances against China.
According to a report by Japan’s Sankei Shimbun, Australia, the U.S. and the UK have informally invited Tokyo to become a member of AUKUS. However, after this publication, Japan’s top government spokesperson Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said that Japan was not discussing joining AUKUS in one form or another and that Japan was not invited to become a member of AUKUS or take part in association meetings.
However, a few days before the news was released, Hirokazu Matsuno said that Japan supports the decision of the AUKUS countries to cooperate on the development of hypersonic missiles.
READ FULL ARTICLE HERE : AUKUS: A new catalyst for the arms race in the Indo-Pacific region – CGTN
