'The AUKUS agreement is heading down the drain… just like the Special Relationship'

Leave it to the United States Congress to “steal defeat from the jaws of victory.”  The bi-partisan supported AUKUS Agreement is a US security pact with Australia and the UK to share nuclear submarine technology and is a key piece of President Biden’s foreign policy agenda. It now is in jeopardy. 

It seems that once again, Joe Biden has made promises he doesn’t have the authority or capacity himself to fulfill. And has done so without thinking about the feasibility of those promises.

Now Congress is stuck trying to make the unworkable work. During the last budget negotiations, speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy rejected the idea of any supplemental spending, yet pushing AUKUS through Congress will require boosting the Pentagon’s budget by supplemental spending funding. President Biden is, in essence, writing checks he can’t cash.

It is in the best interest of the United States to have a Five Eyes partner like Australia increase their power and visibility in the Pacific, which reduces the burden on the US to do so. But the Pacific is not the only place in the world which needs additional resources to protect America’s interests globally. Safety and security cannot be achieved without a strong US. Navy. This is the concern which Senator Roger Wicker (R - MS) has raised. 

Despite supporting AUKUS, Senator Wicker has blocked a plan to fast-track Congress’s authorization, stating, “It makes sense to be sure we have enough submarines for our own security needs before we endorse that pillar of the agreement.” Wicker has said he will not back the current language without additional funding for ships and subs for use by the American military. 

Several other Senators agree that it is now, more than ever that we need to maintain and improve our strong military links with our allies.

They are concerned Biden’s military has been weakened due to diverted priorities and reallocating resources away from America’s defenders. Without ensuring the U.S. remains strong enough to protect its own borders, and its interests around the world, there is a justified fear that the world’s current aggressors will continue to be emboldened and will unite to undermine the strength and sovereignty of the United States and its allies.

Wicker and several other Senators want to see a plan from the White House which authorizes money not only for an adequate number of attack submarines, but a plan which supports the industrial base as well. 

The Navy’s fleet is currently comprised of 49 attack submarines, well under the service’s goal of 66. Especially now when the world is increasingly dangerous and China’s own Navy is rapidly growing in both numbers and capacity, the U.S. Navy really cannot afford to spare any of their nuclear submarines. Yet President Biden has promised to send 3 to Australia. It is important for Australia to join the Nuclear Navy, but not at the expense of the U.S. Navy.

Even if funding was made available to build more, the industrial base can’t flip back on like a light switch. The industry currently builds 1.4 ships per year for the Navy but needs to be building 2.5 ships per year. It’s not that they can’t do that, but they haven’t been given the resources they need and the confidence that the demand signal is there and will remain funded if they do, indeed, ramp up production levels. AUKUS can help with this, but Congressional support is also needed for the industrial base to remain viable.

Even though Senator Wicker represents Mississippi, which is the home of Ingalls Shipbuilders, who would benefit greatly from increased production of Navy ships, his action is a result of genuine concern.

President Biden recently mentioned in an interview, potentially inadvertently, that America is low on ammunition. This isn’t the type of information that should be shared publicly and validated Wicker’s worries. Statements like Biden’s undermine the confidence of our allies and do not evoke fear in our enemies. Senator Wicker’s apprehension for America’s safety is understandable.

While tapping the brakes on this agreement for now to reevaluate the feasibility and timing of this pact, it is essential to reassure our friends in the United Kingdom and Australia of our ongoing commitment to them. This delay is not because AUKUS isn’t a priority, but rather the US needs to address how to get their own military house in order while still keeping their commitments to help others.

The Democrats control both the White House and the Senate, so drastic change is not possible right now, but the Republicans can potentially use this delay as leverage to slow the process down and shine a light on the challenges which are ahead for our nation and the world if we aren’t fully committed to our own level of adequate defense first.

Joe Biden wants to tout AUKUS as a foreign policy victory, which he will certainly boast about as he goes into the presidential election next year. Yet is it really a victory if he undermines the strength of his own nation as a consequence?

Peggy Grande was executive assistant to Ronald Reagan and is author of “The President Will See You Now.”  She was Chair of World for Brexit and served as a political appointee in the Trump Administration. Peggy serves on the Board of Pepperdine School of Public Policy, and the Board of The Center for American Ideas.