Anthony Albanese’s salty response to Paul Keating as Peter Garrett says AUKUS nuclear deal ‘stinks’

Labor power struggles over the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal have escalated as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hits back at Paul Keating and Midnight Oil’s Peter Garrett slams the $368 billion plan.

After criticism of the deal by ex-PMs Keating and Malcolm Turnbull on Thursday, Midnight Oil rocker and ex-Environment Secretary Peter Garrett declared that the submarine deals with the US and UK “stink”.

“I don’t share Keating’s benevolent view of China or his contempt for Labor ministers, but he’s right,” he said.

“This deal reeks of massive costs, loss of independence, weakening of nuclear security and more.”

Mr Albanese on Tuesday announced the costly deal with the United States and the United Kingdom that will secure the nation’s eight high-tech submarines over the next 30 years.

On Wednesday, Labor legend Keating described AUKUS as his political party’s “worst deal since the First World War”.

After returning from a work trip to India and the US, Mr Albanese slammed Keating for his criticism of his former party.

“I find it unfortunate that Mr. Keating chose such a strong personal statement against people,” Albanese told 3AW’s Neil Mitchell.

“I honestly don’t think that just diminishes him. But that’s a decision he made.’

After ex-PMs Keating and Malcolm Turnbull criticized the deal on Thursday, Midnight Oil rocker and ex-Environment Secretary Peter Garrett declared that the submarine deal with the US and UK “stinks”.

Australia will command a fleet of eight nuclear-powered submarines over the next three decades as part of an accelerated plan to deter Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific

Mr Albanese argued Australia’s relationship with China is markedly different than it was three decades ago.

“The world has changed,” he said.

“China has changed its attitude and position in world affairs since the 1990s, when Paul Keating was active in politics, as a parliamentarian and as a leader.

“My job is to rule Australia in 2023 based on the facts before us.”

He argued that the deal – first struck by predecessor Scott Morrison – was a momentous event for Australia and would improve the nation’s national security at a time of rising global tensions.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong also defended her party’s decision. She said: “Keating has his views, but in essence and in tone they belong to a different time.”

“We are not facing the region of 30 years ago. We’re not dealing with a region that we hope we had. We face the region of today and must work to secure the region we want for the future.”

Former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull made an appearance ABC Radio expressed doubts about the deal but apologized for not “being able to express his concerns as colorfully as Paul’s.”

Malcolm Turnbull is the second former prime minister in as many days to nix the government’s historic AUKUS nuclear submarine deal

Mr Albanese on Tuesday announced the costly deal with the United States and the United Kingdom that will secure the nation’s eight high-tech submarines over the next 30 years

“The reality is that this is going to take a lot more time, cost a lot more money – take a lot more risks and cost a lot more money than if we went ahead with the submarine project that we had with France, which Morrison recklessly canceled,” he said.

Mr Turnbull also cast doubt on Britain’s ability to keep its end of the deal – which includes starting construction of a new fleet of nuclear submarines by the end of this decade.

“The bottom line is that their economy is sick. It has fundamental, existential problems,” he said.

“One has to wonder, given the huge demand they have elsewhere, will Britain be able to sustain investment in its navy and military for years to come.”

The UK economy has suffered repeated setbacks due to Brexit, Covid, the war in Ukraine and instability from constant leadership changes.

Despite his concerns, Mr. Turnbull noted that the AUKUS deal was “done and committed”.

“I don’t think there’s going back,” he said

Mr Turnbull, who was Prime Minister as leader of the Liberal Party from 2015 to 2018, also questioned whether there had been a thorough risk assessment.

“This is not criticism, this is an observation of reality. Every new class of naval vessel carries enormous risks,” he said.

But he dismissed Mr Keating’s description of the deal as “the worst since the First World War” and argued: “I wouldn’t go into that. My concerns are more limited.’

Former Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating has slammed the Albanian government over the AUKUS Defense Pact

Mr Turnbull said there had not been enough talk beforehand about the ins and outs of the deal.

‘Morrison deceived the French, misled the Americans, a shocking affair. He did everything in secret. He boasts about it… He was obsessed with secrecy.

“There has not been a fully transparent public debate on these issues. We’ve been caught up in this hoopla, and anyone who raises any concerns is implied to lack patriotism.

“I think there are big problems.”

Still, the criticism pales in comparison to what Mr Keating said on Wednesday.

During an appearance at the National Press Club on Wednesday, the famously sharp-tongued ex-PM Anthony Albanese took Richard Marles, Penny Wong, US President Joe Biden, intelligence agencies and virtually any reporter who dared ask him a question.

“Because I have a brain. Mainly,’ he said. “And I can think. And I can read. And I read every day.

“I mean, why would China want to threaten… What would be the point? You get the iron ore, the coal, the wheat.

“What’s the point of China wanting to occupy Sydney and Melbourne? Military?’

‘And could they ever do that? Could they ever bring the numbers here? It would take an armada of troop ships to do so.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday announced a $368 billion deal with the United States and the United Kingdom that will secure eight high-tech submarines over the next 30 years

‘So you don’t need a briefing from the stupid security agencies we have in Canberra to tell you that. I mean, I know you’re trying to ask a question, but the question is so stupid it hardly deserves an answer.”

Mr Keating accused the Albanian government of accepting the $360 billion deal negotiated by the previous Morrison government in just 24 hours.

“How would you do that in 24 hours?” asked Mr. Keating.

“You can only do it if you don’t have the perceptual skills to understand the weight of the choices you have to make.

“That’s what others call incompetence. I might call it ‘try’.”

Mr Keating called it the worst decision by a Labor government since World War I, when Prime Minister Billy Hughes backed conscription, and said the whole deal was based on the mistaken notion that China posed a direct threat to Australia.

“It’s a distortion and it’s not true,” Mr. Keating said of the idea. “The Chinese have never indicated that they would threaten us or said so explicitly.”

Mr. Keating ridiculed the idea that the submarines would protect Australia from a Chinese invasion.

“The idea that we need American submarines to protect us, if we buy eight, there are three at sea,” he said.

“Three will protect us from the power of China. Really! I mean the junk of it. The garbage.’

Mr Keating argued that the deal merely dragged Australia into the US strategic orbit to maintain its dominance in the Asia-Pacific region, but left the national interest in the “deep doo-doo”.

Mr Keating also took aim at Defense Secretary Richard Marles and Foreign Secretary Penny Wong, saying the AUKUS deal was a failure of strategic thinking.

All three nations are confident that they will continue to comply with nuclear non-proliferation requirements.

But Beijing Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin attacked the deal for its “high-pitched rhetoric to deceive the world” regarding nuclear non-proliferation.

“The US, UK, Australia and the IAEA Secretariat have no right to reach agreement among themselves on security issues related to AUKUS nuclear-submarine cooperation,” he said.

“Security issues related to nuclear submarine cooperation should be discussed and decided together by the international community.”

Opposition leader Peter Dutton said Mr Keating’s comments showed there was a split within the Labor Party over AUKUS.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk