Albanese says Australia supports ‘status quo’ on Taiwan
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The news: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that Australia “supports the status quo” with regard to Taiwan on his first full day of his China tour on Sunday.
The context: Speaking to reporters after visiting Shanghai, Albanese said that Australia does not support “any unilateral action” on Taiwan and that the country’s spending on both defence and aid was "about advancing peace and security in our region".
Declining to give an explicit public assurance that Australia’s nuclear submarines would assist the US in a potential conflict with China, Albanese said: "We have a clear position and we have been consistent about that…We don't want any change in the status quo."
Albanese’s comments followed a report by the Financial Times on Saturday, which said that senior defence official Elbridge Colby who is leading Trump’s review of AUKUS was pressuring Japan and China to commit to the role the would play should the US and China begin a conflict over Taiwan.
Following the FT report Colby said via X that the US is urging allies to increased their defence spending and efforts “related to our collective defence.
Colby added: “Of course, some among our allies might not welcome frank conversations. But many, now led by NATO after the historic Hague Summit, are seeing the urgent need to step up and are doing so. President Trump has shown the approach and the formula - and we will not be deterred from advancing his agenda.”
A separate US government source told the ABC on Sunday that the US was having a "broader conversation" with allies like Australia. The source also said that Australia had rejected overtures from US officials who suggested Australia should give specific assurances to the Trump administration about how they'd deploy Virginia-class submarines acquired through the AUKUS pact in the event of the US going to war.
