China furious as key UK nuclear submarine deal set to block Taiwan invasion

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The partnership between the countries was announced in 2021 and met with outrage from China, who claimed it “intensifies the arms race.”

15:46, Thu, Apr 4, 2024 | UPDATED: 15:52, Thu, Apr 4, 2024

A nuclear submarine pact between the UK, US, and Australia could be the key to deterring China. (Image: Getty)

A top US official has claimed that a nuclear submarine project between multiple allied countries could be the key to deterring Chinese aggression in Taiwan.

Kurt Campbell, Deputy Secretary for the Department of State (DOS) said the pact, known as AUKUS, involves the UK and US helping Australia to develop a fleet of nuclear submarines.

He argued that this would be instrumental in “strengthening peace and stability” between China and Taiwan, specifically in the Taiwan Strait which separates the countries.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), Campbell said: “I think that balance, that additional capacity, will help strengthen deterrence more generally.

“I think those practical circumstances of which AUKUS has the potential to have submarines from a number of countries operating in close coordination.”

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Chinese President Xi Jinping has not ruled out using force to claim Taiwan. (Image: Getty)

He added: “Those have enormous implications in a variety of scenarios, including cross-strait circumstances. So I think I would argue that working closely with other nations, not just diplomatically but defense avenues, has the consequences of strengthening peace and stability.”

The partnership between the three countries was announced in 2021 and met with outrage from China. Foreign Ministry spokesperson said it “undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race.”

China, who believes Taiwan to be part of its territory, slammed AUKUS for directly targeting it and its military, however, Biden administration officials maintained it is “not aimed or about any one country”.

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Joe Biden himself also stood firm in defending the alliance despite the backlash from China. He said it marked a “historic step” in recognising “the imperative of ensuring peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific over the long term.”

Xi Jinping has previously said he would not rule out the use of froce in order to lay claim over Taiwan, a sentiment that is echoes throughout his Communist Party.

Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson Colonel Wu Qian recently told a press briefing: “Taiwan is China’s Taiwan, and there is no such thing as ‘forbidden and restricted waters’ in the Xiamen-Kinmen waters.”

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