China has lashed out at Australia with a stark warning after Donald Trump threw his full support behind the $368 billion AUKUS submarine pact during a high-profile meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
During the meeting, Trump publicly backed the fast-tracking of three Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, hailing the trilateral defence agreement as a key ‘deterrent’ to Beijing‘s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific.
‘I think we’ll be just fine with China. China doesn’t want to do that,’ Trump said on Wednesday, referring to a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
The meeting marked a major diplomatic moment for the Albanese government, as Trump not only publicly endorsed AUKUS for the first time but also announced a landmark critical minerals agreement with Australia.
But the renewed show of unity between the two allies has drawn an angry response from Beijing.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun condemned the submarine pact, warning that it would only inflame regional tensions and risk sparking a new arms race.
‘China has made clear more than once its position on the so-called trilateral security partnership between the US, the UK and Australia designed to advance co-operation on nuclear submarines and other cutting-edge military technologies.
‘We oppose bloc confrontation and anything that increases the risk of nuclear proliferation and exacerbates arms race,’ Guo said at a press conference on Tuesday, following the Albanese-Trump meeting.
Anthony Albanese (left) and Donald Trump (right) signed a rare minerals deal on Tuesday
Beijing has repeatedly warned that AUKUS threatens regional stability, accusing the three nations of breaching global non-proliferation norms by sharing nuclear submarine technology with a non-nuclear-armed country.
The Chinese government also doubled down on its position over Taiwan, warning foreign powers not to interfere in what it considers an ‘internal affair.’
‘Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory,’ Guo declared.
‘We will never ever allow anyone or any force to separate Taiwan from China in any way.’
The minerals deal between Australia and the United States, aimed at reducing reliance on Chinese supply chains, will see both nations strengthen cooperation in the mining and processing of key resources.
it comes as China withholds exports and the technology needed for processing.
The agreement covers lithium, rare earths, and cobalt — all vital for defence manufacturing, electric vehicles, and renewable energy infrastructure.
The partnership is designed to create ‘secure, transparent and resilient’ supply chains between the two countries, amid growing concerns in Washington over China’s dominance of global critical mineral markets.
Trump’s strong backing of AUKUS follows a tense period for the project, after the pact was placed under Pentagon review amid questions about its cost and strategic value.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun (pictured) slammed the AUKUS security pact
His new remarks appeared to reassure both Canberra and London that the alliance would remain a pillar of US Indo-Pacific strategy.
When asked about the security agreement’s centrepiece nuclear-submarine deal, Mr Trump replied: ‘They’re getting them’.
Under the agreement, the US would sell Virginia-class nuclear submarines to Australia from the early 2030s.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said the president’s comments were ‘a really important affirmation’ of US commitment to the military pact.
‘This is a program which is very much in the interests of the United States as it is in the interests of Australia,’ he told reporters at South Australia’s Osborne naval shipyard.
