Marles Reveals Government Knew of Pentagon AUKUS Review 'For Weeks'

Credit: Skynews Australia

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles Thursday revealed the government has known about the Pentagon's AUKUS review "for weeks," dismissing opposition criticism as "breathless" while expressing confidence the trilateral submarine partnership will proceed under the Trump administration.

Marles told Newsday the 30-day review represents routine practice for incoming governments and mirrors similar assessments conducted by Australia and the United Kingdom after recent leadership changes.

"We've known about the review for some time. We welcome it and we will engage with it," Marles said during the television interview. "It's a very natural step for the incoming administration to take."

The defence minister's timeline contradicts suggestions from Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor that the review came "out of the blue," instead indicating sustained diplomatic engagement between Australian and American officials ahead of the formal announcement.

Opposition Criticism Dismissed

Marles directly criticized Taylor's press conference Thursday morning, urging the Coalition to maintain calm while reaffirming bipartisan support for the submarine agreement.

"The kind of breathless press conference that Angus Taylor gave, I work on the assumption that the coalition are still there supporting AUKUS," Marles said. "But I think actually he and the coalition really need to take a deep breath."

The deputy prime minister emphasized the review's routine nature, noting both Australia's Defence Strategic Review and the UK's assessment under Sir Keir Starmer followed similar patterns.

"It's utterly consistent with what we did as a new government, what the Starmer government did as a new government," he said. "It's what governments do and I think we'll do in the future."

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