Japan, South Korea Should Join AUKUS, UK Parliamentary Committee Says

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (L), US President Joe Biden (C) and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hold a press conference after a trilateral meeting during the AUKUS summit in San Diego, Calif., on March 13, 2023. Leon Neal/Getty Images

A proposal for Japan and South Korea to join the trilateral AUKUS alliance has been put forward by the UK Foreign Affairs Committee.

In its report (pdf) that was published on Aug. 30, the committee outlined a number of strategies to curb the growing challenges from an aggressive Beijing in the Indo-Pacific, including ramping up the technological capabilities of AUKUS.

“AUKUS is not purely about Australia acquiring a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines,” the predominantly Conservative Party committee said in its report.

“There is a cyber and advanced technology sharing and joint development component that could be equally, if not more, significant.

“The government should propose to Australia and the United States that Japan and South Korea be invited to join an AUKUS technological defence cooperation agreement focused on Strand B activities only.”

Australia’s Department of Defence has been approached for comment.

Focusing on Tech, Not Nuclear

According to the proposal, the added alliance with Japan and South Korea would likely focus primarily on advanced technologies such as cyber AI, quantum, and underwater technologies, including submarine detection.

The Committee noted that the addition of Japan and South Korea could deliver “tangible outcomes” faster than the submarine program and also provide the UK with economic, security, and technological benefits.

UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Alicia Kearns MP said increasing the UK’s networks in the Indo-Pacific could “temper China’s economic and political expansionism, offering a viable, democratic alternative to Indo-Pacific states.”

“The Indo-Pacific is a vast and varied geopolitical region, home to over half of the world’s population and set to continue to grow as a major economic powerhouse. The era of the Indo-Pacific is here,” she said.

Ms. Kearns noted that her Committee has, for years, advocated for the need to balance economic cooperation with caution in dealings with Beijing and has urged the UK government to place a “high priority” in the Indo-Pacific while also maintaining its focus on the Euro-Atlantic region.

‘AUKUS–Japan–ROK’ Would Speed Up Innovation: US Navy Officer

According to Jasmin Alsaied, a U.S. Navy surface warfare officer and a fellow at the Middle East Institute, the inclusion of Tokyo and Seoul would provide an “integrated deterrence posture” that could alter the geopolitical landscape of the Indo-Pacific.

“AUKUS–Japan–ROK engagement would allow stakeholders to work toward shared goals against threats in the region by providing opportunities to use technology as a deterrent to aggressors,” Ms. Alsaied wrote in an op-ed published by the Asia Times, noting that there’s an interest from “all parties” to increase the use of advanced technologies in the Indo-Pacific.

“First, the AUKUS pact includes projects on undersea autonomous vehicles, AI systems, and the rapid integration of commercial technologies.

“Moreover, both the ROK [Republic of Korea] and Japan have expressed interest in AI and autonomous projects and could help test and develop these platforms to solve warfighting needs.”

Ms. Alsaied noted that the additional technological input would achieve two outcomes: develop new defence capabilities for Toyko, Seoul, and AUKUS and allow the testing and embedding of technologies that rely on rapid data transfer and information sharing.

“This joint framework would reinforce confidence-building measures at a time when discussions of weapons and warfare tend to threaten stability,” Ms. Alsaied wrote.

“To be clear, AUKUS-Japan-ROK is a framework for engagement with Japan and the ROK that does not rely on nuclear technology-sharing.

“Engagements of this nature could also supplement AUKUS’ military aperture and provide a shared framework that uses soft power tools to project stability in the region.”

Committee Also Calls for the UK to Join the Quad

The Foreign Affairs Committee also urged the UK to try and join the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or “Quad,” between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States.

The Quad is a working group between the four democratic countries that seeks to create a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“We see advantage in working with the Quad to develop a coordinated strategy covering the whole Indo-Pacific maritime area, and applying to join the Quad at such time as the existing members feel is appropriate,” the report reads.

“Given the strength of our bilateral defence relationships with Quad members and the correlation between the UK’s and Quad’s objectives, the UK should seek to join the Quad.

“If we wish to prevent the undermining of international standards and the values of the rules-based system, our joining some Indo-Pacific specific organisations is crucial, to support our allies and uphold those values.”

While Beijing has repeatedly criticised AUKUS and the Quad working group as anti-Chinese and stoking “division” and a “cold war mentality,” the UK Committee responded by saying Beijing should “not perceive or falsely portray” the groupings as hostile.

“Any effort to do so should be exposed for the false narrative that it is,” the Committee report reads.

The Committee also urged the UK to counter disinformation, including that AUKUS is a challenge to the international nuclear nonproliferation regime, particularly misconceptions around the difference between nuclear-propelled and nuclear-armed submarines.

“Much of this disinformation emanates from the PRC [People’s Republic of China] and its allies, such as Russia,” the report reads.

The Committee’s report comes after U.S. Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), called on Australia and the UK to adopt a “war footing” to avoid conflict with Beijing.