Australia all in on Aukus nuclear submarines, with no Plan B

ANALYSIS: With the Aukus programme lagging behind, Australia has no realistic delivery date for the first of its new nuclear submarines. Defence hawks say this puts the nation at risk.

WATCH: NBR Senior journalist Lachlan Colquhoun speaks to Simon Shepherd

While Australia sits and waits for its Aukus (Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States trilateral security partnership) partners to get busy with the A$368 billion ($449b) nuclear submarine programme, there are some strange things happening.

First, on his soft power charm offensive in

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Lachlan Colquhoun Wed, 06 May 2026

Contact the Writer: lachlan@nbr.co.nz

News tip? Question? Typo? Let us know: editor@nbr.co.nz

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