Australia and the US nuclear umbrella : from deterrence taker to deterrence maker

Journal article


Dean, Peter J., Fruehling, Stephan and O'Neil, Andrew. (2024). Australia and the US nuclear umbrella : from deterrence taker to deterrence maker. Australian Journal of International Affairs. 78(1), pp. 22-39. https://doi.org/10.1080/10357718.2024.2302589
AuthorsDean, Peter J., Fruehling, Stephan and O'Neil, Andrew
Abstract

Historically, Australia's approach to extended nuclear deterrence can be seen as a consumer rather than contributor within the framework of its alliance with the United States. Despite invoking the nuclear umbrella in strategic guidance since the early 1990s, successive Australian governments have been reluctant to engage with operationally supporting extended nuclear deterrence and content to point to the Joint Facilities as evidence of Australia's contribution. The changing nature of the Indo-Pacific strategic balance means that this approach is increasingly misaligned with contemporary strategic risks and Australia's evolving strategic focus on deterrence. The recent intensification of defence and force posture cooperation between Canberra and Washington presents a window of opportunity for Australia to redefine its approach to the nuclear umbrella in the context of a more holistic understanding of mutual commitments in the alliance. This article outlines how Australia should bolster its contribution through more structured dialogue with the US on nuclear strategy and mutual expectations, supporting preparation for and potential execution of US nuclear operations in the Indo-Pacific, and returning to a formal position of opposing the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Keywordsalliance; deterrence; nuclear weapons; Australia; United States
Year01 Jan 2024
JournalAustralian Journal of International Affairs
Journal citation78 (1), pp. 22-39
PublisherRoutledge
ISSN1035-7718
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1080/10357718.2024.2302589
Web address (URL)https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10357718.2024.2302589
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Research or scholarlyResearch
Page range22-39
Publisher's version
License
File Access Level
Open
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
Print11 Jan 2024
Publication process dates
Deposited17 Sep 2024
Additional information

© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.

Place of publicationUnited Kingdom
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