and of course Turnbull was only chasing votes in SA and did give one...
err, poo about the real cost or anything about these $150 BILLION Subs
or how useful or even if they would be very built in SA
EVEN a stupid would listen and take advise from a World leader in submarines
but not dear leader turnbull !
And now the Truth
Turnbull government rejected US advice to prefer Japanese subs
Washington was rebuffed by the Australian government when it tried to convey strategic concerns about the $150 billion new submarine project, a former senior Pentagon official has revealed.
Washington was “not able to have a serious alliance discussion” with the Turnbull government about the Americans’ preference for Japan to build the navy’s new submarines to strengthen Australia-US-Japan ties in the face of a rising China.
In the first public comments by a senior Pentagon official at the time, Amy Searight has revealed hidden tensions between the Obama administration and the Australian government last year over the submarine project, which was awarded to French company DCNS. Her comments precede today’s Australia-US Ministerial Consultations in Sydney between US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defence James Mattis and their Australian counterparts Julie Bishop and Marise Payne.
Dr Searight, then deputy assistant US secretary for defence for South and Southeast Asia, said Canberra told the Pentagon last year it did not want to hear American opinion on the submarine bid process between France, Japan and Germany.
“Everyone respected it was Australia’s decision to make,” Dr Searight told The Australian in Washington.
“(But) offering an opinion ... was very much rebuffed,” she said. “There was puzzlement as to why there was resistance in hearing the opinions of American officials (on) how we viewed it strategically, in terms of the alliance. It was unfortunate on a strategic challenge of this magnitude that we were not able to have a serious alliance discussion about it.”
Dr Searight, whose Pentagon responsibilities included Australia, said Washington believed Japanese-built submarines offered important strategic advantages to both the Australia and the US.
Both Australian and US navies already are conducting regional exercises with Japan’s Soryu-class submarines, as China aggressively builds of its submarine fleet.
“There was disappointment that Japan was not selected ... there was a lot of disappointment, actually,” said Dr Searight, who is now director of the Southeast Asia program at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
“The Japanese had a strong bid and the strategists in this town thought it was a missed opportunity to more quickly march towards trilateral co-operation.
“So there was disappointment and there was also a concern that this would damage Australia- Japan relations, (which) have been incredibly valuable to the US.”
Australia chose DCNS to design the 12 new submarines over bidders from Japan and Germany.
Dr Searight said the choice of France was “a shock” to the Pentagon although she did not believe US officials questioned the final decision with Australia.
Senior Defence sources have told The Australian, however, that the potential strategic benefits of choosing Japan took second place to choosing the best submarine for Australia.
“Strategic issues were an irrelevant consideration unless there was little difference on capability between the three (proposed submarines),” one source said. Defence believed the French bid was so superior to those of Japan and Germany that strategic considerations were all but irrelevant.
“This was about capability and it was driven by a judgment on what the most capable submarine was,” the source said.
“The people in the Pentagon did not have access to our three proposals.”
Despite Washington’s disappointment, three senior US naval experts actively involved in the process are reported to have been satisfied with the outcome.
The process was monitored by an independent panel chaired by former secretary of the US navy, Donald Winter. It was also peer-reviewed by retired USN vice-admiral Paul Sullivan and rear admiral Thomas Eccles.
In a statement, Mrs Bishop and Mrs Payne said today’s AUSMIN meeting “will discuss our shared commitment to ensuring global peace and stability, and our mutual strategic priorities including North Korea, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and defeating ISIS. Australia-US co-operation and collaboration in the Pacific and Southeast Asia will also be a key focus.”
Mr Tillerson and Mr Mattis, not in office during the Australian bid process, are expected to reaffirm the Trump administration’s commitment to the alliance
