Richard Marles hits out at Peter Dutton for ‘undermining’ AUKUS agreement after he revealed plan to buy two US submarines

The Defence Minister accused his predecessor of “rank politics” and putting the AUKUS agreement in jeopardy after he revealed plans to purchase two Virginia-class submarines to plug a capability gap.

Defence Minister Richard Marles has accused Opposition Leader Peter Dutton of trying to undermine the trilateral AUKUS security agreement after he revealed plans to buy nuclear-powered submarines from the United States to fill an expected capacity gap.

Mr Dutton believes the best decision is to buy two boats from the US as the current Collins class submarines will need to be upgraded and have their life extended for at least a decade until the first nuclear subs could be built in Australia in the late 2030s.

In an opinion piece written in The Australian, Mr Dutton was hopeful of a negotiation with Washington if the former Coalition remained in government, adding it “became obvious” the government should choose the US Virginia-class boats.

“This wouldn’t mean waiting until 2038 for the first submarine to be built here in Australia. We would have our first two subs this decade. I had formed a judgment the Americans would have facilitated exactly that,” he said.

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Mr Dutton’s comments are seen as controversial by Mr Marles as the government have not decided whether it would go with the US or the United Kingdom boats.

He also suggested Australia should increase its British military hardware, such as Hunter-class frigates, to “honour and respect” the UK in the agreement.

But the Defence Minister hit back at the remarks made by his predecessor, declaring his proposal was “rank politics” and it was “inconsistent with everything Peter Dutton was doing and saying in government”.

“This outburst today, from someone so recently in the (defence minister’s) chair, is damaging to Australia’s national interest,” he told The Guardian.

“These comments are loose and undermine the AUKUS agreement.”

“The government has made no decision on the preferred submarine. All options remain on the table.”

Mr Dutton later revealed the Coalition – if they retained government three weeks ago – could have made an announcement some time in July or August about the deal to secure US Virginia-class submarines.

He fears Labor could try to save money by building more conventional boats rather than the favoured nuclear-powered subs.

“I really worry that Labor is now walking away from AUKUS, from the submarine deal, and that is clearly not in our national interest,” he told Sydney Radio 2GB.

“If Labor thinks there’s a cheap option here to build a new diesel electric submarine … then I think that’s folly and it just worries me.”