Former Labor foreign minister Gareth Evans says Australia won’t have sovereignty over Aukus submarines

Evans says Anthony Albanese should have reviewed Aukus when he came to power in 2022 and that the PM is too risk-averse

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Anthony Albanese is unlikely to rethink the indefensibly high" price of the Aukus security pact on Australia's sovereignty because the prime minister is preoccupied" with avoiding being labelled as weak, according to Labor's longest serving foreign affairs minister.

Gareth Evans, who held the portfolio from 1988 to 1996, stepped up his criticisms of the Aukus deal with the US and the UK, dismissing the Australian government's argument that it will have full sovereign control of the nuclear-powered submarines as frankly a joke in bad taste".

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