Former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr says he plans to launch legal action against New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters as debate about the AUKUS defence pact heats up
Peters, who is also New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, made allegations about Carr and his closeness to China in a radio interview yesterday.
Local media and wire services decided not to republish them.
A spokesperson for Carr said he would commence legal action as the remarks were considered defamatory.
Carr, who was a long-serving New South Wales premier before being appointed foreign minister in 2012, has been a vocal critic of the AUKUS pact, a defence agreement between Australia, the United States and Britain.
Under the deal, Australia will acquire nuclear-powered, but not nuclear armed, submarines in a strategic move widely seen to be a response to China’s growing influence across the Indo-Pacific.
The staggering sums countries spend on defending themselves
New Zealand has been exploring whether to join AUKUS through “pillar two”, which does not involve nuclear submarines.
It is focused on delivering advanced capabilities and sharing technologies across a range of areas.
Last month, Carr took part in a New Zealand Labour Party-hosted AUKUS summit in Wellington, where speakers included former prime minister Helen Clark.
Carr said Australia was entitled to push back against China’s growing assertiveness, but questioned the estimated $368 billion price tag for nuclear-powered submarines.
He described it as the “biggest transfer of wealth” outside of Australia in the country’s history.
The summit also raised concerns that if New Zealand joined AUKUS, it would impinge on the nation’s foreign policy, stopping it from being able to disagree with the US, and also distract from climate change which Pacific leaders hold to be the most pressing security issue in the region.
