Australia will be left with no submarines if it abandons Aukus, senior defence official warns

A senior Australian defence official has warned that abandoning the Aukus submarine partnership with the US and UK would leave Australia without any submarines. The warning came during questioning by Malcolm Turnbull about what would happen if the promised Virginia-class and Aukus-class submarines fail to materialize on schedule. The official declined to publicly entertain alternatives to the agreement, underscoring the government's commitment to the deal despite potential delays in submarine deliveries. Aukus represents a cornerstone of Australia's defence strategy in the Indo-Pacific, involving decades-long submarine fleet modernization. The warning suggests Australia has made strategic bets on the Aukus submarines with few fallback options if the partnership falters.