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The Age
5 hours ago
- The Age
AUKUS agreement: Trump official questions Australia's commitment amid Pentagon review
'That's still a jump ball as far as I'm concerned. Because the Australians have been noticeably fickle. We need to understand, Australia has a population of around 30 million people. It's a remarkably small tax base, and they are making a significant tax investment in this over the next 10 years.' A jump ball in basketball is similar to a ball-up in Australian Rules Football, where either team has a chance of gaining control of the play. Both Labor and the Coalition have expressed consistent commitment to AUKUS. Hendrix has also argued AUKUS does not provide enough capacity for Australian shipyards to repair American and British submarines, as well as Australian ones, and the US should 'more heavily leverage' the agreement. He has said of Australia and the Philippines: 'We're going to need them and their assistance and their basing rights and infrastructure, and I don't think they're ready to host Americans in the way that we're going to need to be hosted to do a counter-campaign to the Chinese invasion.' Hendrix appears to have deleted a number of posts on X about Australia and AUKUS. In one that is still online, from April 2024, he said there were two key questions – 'whether the Australian government will sustain their commitment across the coming years and change of governments', and 'whether the US will actually be willing to give up Virginia-class boats'. Loading Last week, Hendrix welcomed a news story that reported the Pentagon was asking Australia and Japan to make clear commitments about what they would do in a conflict between the US and China over Taiwan. 'Given these nations [are] critical [to] the task of logistically supporting US forces should we come to the aid of Taiwan, this inquiry is legitimate,' he said. 'I would be shocked to find that the previous administration hadn't asked the partners.' Reached by text, Hendrix declined to comment and referred questions to the White House. Spokeswoman Anna Kelly supplied a statement that said US shipbuilding had been neglected for decades and would be boosted by a $US43 billion ($66 billion) investment in the president's One Big Beautiful Bill. 'No president has done more to bolster American maritime power, and his White House Office of Shipbuilding will operate under the Office of Management and Budget,' she said. In their letter to Hegseth, Republican committee chair John Moolenaar and Democratic representative Raja Krishnamoorthi said AUKUS had bipartisan support in Congress for a reason, and that it would strengthen US security as well as that of Australia and the United Kingdom. They noted Beijing's 'unprecedented' live-fire exercises in the Tasman Sea in February. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth watches a display of drone technology at the Pentagon on Wednesday. Credit: AP 'This attempt to project power as far south as New Zealand's front door highlights the importance of AUKUS in cementing ties to longstanding allies like Australia, as well as advancing vital undersea capabilities that will be central to deterrence,' they wrote. 'We are stronger together under the AUKUS framework.' The committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday in Washington on strategies to counter economic coercion by the Chinese Communist Party against democracies. Former Australian prime minister Scott Morrison, who brokered the AUKUS deal, is scheduled to appear, as is former US senator and ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel. Undersecretary of defence for policy Elbridge Colby, who is heading the Pentagon's AUKUS review, has posted actively on social media over the past fortnight, doubling down on his calls for American allies to 'step up'. Loading 'No one at the Pentagon is asking for a blank cheque from our allies. Rather, the United States and our allies all benefit from a reasonable expectation of what contributions we can anticipate each other to make,' he said on Monday, US time. 'That is why we are working closely with our allies to align expectations, an approach akin to what we have with NATO and South Korea. This will make our alliances sturdier and more equitable. That's just common sense.' Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what's making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter.
7NEWS
5 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Fast food giants eye Australian consumers as pretzel empire opens its first local store
A proud American institution has opened its doors for the first time in Australia, offering something a little different to most US fast food empires. Auntie Anne's famous pretzels, hotdogs and ice cream delights will be available to Sydneysiders from Saturday, with the first store opening its doors at Westfield Parramatta. And it isn't likely to be the only one, with Popeyes, Jollibee and Firehouse Subs looking for store locations to bring over their popular goods for Australian consumers. Auntie Anne's was started in 1988 when founder Anne Beiler bought a stand in a Pennsylvania farmer's market. She started baking pretzels to help fund her husband's desire to provide free family counselling services for their community. Her husband's dream ultimately came true with the popularity of the now-international pretzels. Executive Director of Food, Beverage and Agribusiness Insights at ANZ, Michael Whitehead, isn't surprised by the interest of the US fast-food chains. 'Australians cannot get enough chicken in our fast-food restaurant — it has become the dominant meat,' he told 7NEWS. 'We will see people flocking to it — trying it — and people from all demographics.' Popeyes chicken, which is known for its 'mouth-watering crunch and juicy fried chicken bursting with Louisiana flavour', is planning to rival Australian favourite, KFC. Red Rooster, Oporto and KFC currently dominate Australia's takeaway chicken market. Popeyes' potential expansion to the local market would be the latest US venture to hit Australian shores, following the likes of Wendy's, In-N-Out Burger and Chuck E. Cheese. Currently, there is no information about where or when Popeyes is planning to open. Popular chain Jollibee is also planning to open in Sydney, with a potential location in Campbelltown according to Delicious. The Filipino fast-food giant offers burgers, named Yumburgers, with chicken. But something never offered by a fast-food giant before is its ready-to-eat spaghetti. Sandwich king Firehouse Subs, meanwhile, is blazing a trail into Australia with plans to open 165 locations across the country over the next decade. The first restaurant will open in south-east Queensland in late 2025, marking the start of the brand's ambitious expansion into the Australian market.
The Advertiser
8 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Australia pays US second $800m for AUKUS amid review
Australia has paid the United States $A800 million in the second instalment under the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, despite an ongoing formal review of the agreement by US President Donald Trump's administration. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the latest instalment on Wednesday, following an initial $A500 million paid in February. In 2023, the United States, Australia and Britain unveiled details of a plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines from the early 2030s to counter China's ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. Australia committed to spend $A368 billion over three decades in its biggest-ever defence deal. Canberra is due to pay the US $A3 billion by the end of the year to support the expansion of American submarine shipyards, Reuters reported in April. "There's a schedule of payments to be made. We have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom, it is about increasing their capacity, their industrial capacity," Albanese told national broadcaster ABC. "As part of that as well, we have Australians on the ground, learning those skills." Trump launched a formal review of AUKUS in June to examine whether the pact met his "American First" criteria. It will be led by Elbridge Colby, who in the past has expressed scepticism about AUKUS. Australia, which sees the submarines as critical to its own defence as tensions grow over China's military build-up, has maintained it is confident the pact will proceed. "We support AUKUS," Albanese said. "We have an agreement to a treaty level, with our partners, signed, of course in San Diego with the United States and United Kingdom." Washington will sell several Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, while Britain and Australia will later build a new AUKUS-class submarine. Australia has paid the United States $A800 million in the second instalment under the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, despite an ongoing formal review of the agreement by US President Donald Trump's administration. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the latest instalment on Wednesday, following an initial $A500 million paid in February. In 2023, the United States, Australia and Britain unveiled details of a plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines from the early 2030s to counter China's ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. Australia committed to spend $A368 billion over three decades in its biggest-ever defence deal. Canberra is due to pay the US $A3 billion by the end of the year to support the expansion of American submarine shipyards, Reuters reported in April. "There's a schedule of payments to be made. We have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom, it is about increasing their capacity, their industrial capacity," Albanese told national broadcaster ABC. "As part of that as well, we have Australians on the ground, learning those skills." Trump launched a formal review of AUKUS in June to examine whether the pact met his "American First" criteria. It will be led by Elbridge Colby, who in the past has expressed scepticism about AUKUS. Australia, which sees the submarines as critical to its own defence as tensions grow over China's military build-up, has maintained it is confident the pact will proceed. "We support AUKUS," Albanese said. "We have an agreement to a treaty level, with our partners, signed, of course in San Diego with the United States and United Kingdom." Washington will sell several Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, while Britain and Australia will later build a new AUKUS-class submarine. Australia has paid the United States $A800 million in the second instalment under the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, despite an ongoing formal review of the agreement by US President Donald Trump's administration. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the latest instalment on Wednesday, following an initial $A500 million paid in February. In 2023, the United States, Australia and Britain unveiled details of a plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines from the early 2030s to counter China's ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. Australia committed to spend $A368 billion over three decades in its biggest-ever defence deal. Canberra is due to pay the US $A3 billion by the end of the year to support the expansion of American submarine shipyards, Reuters reported in April. "There's a schedule of payments to be made. We have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom, it is about increasing their capacity, their industrial capacity," Albanese told national broadcaster ABC. "As part of that as well, we have Australians on the ground, learning those skills." Trump launched a formal review of AUKUS in June to examine whether the pact met his "American First" criteria. It will be led by Elbridge Colby, who in the past has expressed scepticism about AUKUS. Australia, which sees the submarines as critical to its own defence as tensions grow over China's military build-up, has maintained it is confident the pact will proceed. "We support AUKUS," Albanese said. "We have an agreement to a treaty level, with our partners, signed, of course in San Diego with the United States and United Kingdom." Washington will sell several Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, while Britain and Australia will later build a new AUKUS-class submarine. Australia has paid the United States $A800 million in the second instalment under the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, despite an ongoing formal review of the agreement by US President Donald Trump's administration. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed the latest instalment on Wednesday, following an initial $A500 million paid in February. In 2023, the United States, Australia and Britain unveiled details of a plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered attack submarines from the early 2030s to counter China's ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. Australia committed to spend $A368 billion over three decades in its biggest-ever defence deal. Canberra is due to pay the US $A3 billion by the end of the year to support the expansion of American submarine shipyards, Reuters reported in April. "There's a schedule of payments to be made. We have an agreement with the United States as well as with the United Kingdom, it is about increasing their capacity, their industrial capacity," Albanese told national broadcaster ABC. "As part of that as well, we have Australians on the ground, learning those skills." Trump launched a formal review of AUKUS in June to examine whether the pact met his "American First" criteria. It will be led by Elbridge Colby, who in the past has expressed scepticism about AUKUS. Australia, which sees the submarines as critical to its own defence as tensions grow over China's military build-up, has maintained it is confident the pact will proceed. "We support AUKUS," Albanese said. "We have an agreement to a treaty level, with our partners, signed, of course in San Diego with the United States and United Kingdom." Washington will sell several Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, while Britain and Australia will later build a new AUKUS-class submarine.
