Two former Australian foreign ministers have issued stark warnings about the reliability of the United States as an ally, calling for a fundamental reassessment of Australia’s defense arrangements in the wake of recent American military actions in Venezuela and renewed territorial ambitions toward Greenland.
The concerns, voiced by Bob Carr and Gareth Evans, both of whom served as foreign ministers under Labor governments, represent a significant challenge to the current Albanese administration’s approach to the alliance that has anchored Australian foreign policy for more than seven decades.
Carr characterized the Trump administration’s foreign policy as “fiercely unpredictable,” describing it as a “colossal challenge” for Australian strategic planning. His assessment came in the days following the American military operation that resulted in the seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.
Evans went further, suggesting that the United States now demonstrates “zero respect” for international law or the interests of its allies. He specifically called for the abandonment of the Aukus submarine agreement, the trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States that was announced in 2021.
“It’s a wake-up call that can no longer be ignored by the Australian government,” Evans stated. “It’s now more than time for the Aukus submarine project to be abandoned, and our defence capability to be built in our own interests, not those of a now totally unreliable United States.”
The American operation in Venezuela involved airstrikes and a military raid that led to Maduro’s capture. President Trump has subsequently made clear his intention to pursue control of Venezuelan oil resources. Beyond Venezuela, the administration has threatened action regarding Greenland, with Trump declaring the United States would take action on the Danish territory “whether they like it or not.”
The Albanese government has maintained a notably restrained response to these developments. Following the Venezuela operation, Prime Minister Albanese stated his government was “monitoring developments” and called for adherence to international law and a “peaceful, democratic transition” of political power. The government has not issued direct criticism of either the Venezuela intervention or the Greenland rhetoric.
This cautious approach stands in marked contrast to the alarm expressed by the two former foreign ministers, both of whom bring decades of experience in Australian diplomacy and strategic policy.
The Aukus agreement, which would see Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines with American and British technology, represents one of the most significant defense commitments in Australian history. The project carries an estimated cost in the hundreds of billions of dollars and would fundamentally reshape Australia’s naval capabilities over the coming decades.
The debate over Australia’s alliance with the United States comes at a moment when the international order appears increasingly unstable. For a middle power like Australia, dependent on both American security guarantees and a rules-based international system, the current situation presents difficult choices.
The question now facing Australian policymakers is whether the concerns raised by Carr and Evans represent a temporary challenge posed by a particular American administration, or whether they signal a more fundamental shift in American foreign policy that requires a strategic recalculation by Canberra.
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