Germany’s Green Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock endorses Australian nuclear-powered submarines

The $368bn Adelaide-based nuclear-powered submarine project has been backed by Germany’s Foreign Minister – in contrast to her Australian Green counterparts.

Germany’s Green Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has endorsed Australia’s pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines, ahead of a visit to the Adelaide shipyard where they will be built.

In a press conference with Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong at Adelaide’s Government House on Friday morning, Ms Baerbock contrasted with her Australian Greens counterparts by declaring Germany was open-minded about the $368bn nuclear-powered submarine project centred on Adelaide.

Ms Baerbock, who later visited German firm Luerssen’s offshore patrol vessel construction operations at Osborne Naval Shipyard, said she wanted to “foster and intensify” defence exchanges “because we’re facing common threats”.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong (left) exchanging football jerseys with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at Government House, Adelaide. Picture: Dean Martin

Ahead of her daylong visit to Adelaide – her only Australian stop – Ms Baerbock decried “the strong gusts of wind that China’s increasingly assertive stance is sending around the world” and urged democracies to stand together “in competition with authoritarian systems”.

Asked by The Advertiser about her nation’s views on the AUKUS security pact and Australia’s plans to build at least eight nuclear-powered submarines in Adelaide, Ms Baerbock’s position contrasted with the Australian Greens, who want to scrap AUKUS and oppose nuclear-powered submarines.

“Well, as we said, we discussed intensive security issues (with Senator Wong) and also how we can co-operate, yet it’s a decision of every country individually, where they proceed with their different industry and also what kind of submarines or other materials they are using,” she said.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock are greeted at Government House by Governor Frances Adamson. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dean Martin

Senator Wong hailed Ms Baerbock’s visit to the Osborne precinct on Friday afternoon as “obviously very important”.

“I think Germany understands the position Australia has, which is this is a very important capability, a very important technology sharing arrangement with AUKUS,” Senator Wong said.

“We did take the opportunity to ensure that the Foreign Minister was briefed on where we have got to, in operationalising particularly pillar one in the period since the announcements.”

The AUKUS agreement’s pillar one is the initiative to help Australia acquire, build and maintain nuclear-powered submarines.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at Government House. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dean Martin

ASC, formerly the Australian Submarine Corporation, and Osborne Naval Shipyard neighbour BAE Systems Australia were on March 21 named as the joint builders of Australia’s AUKUS submarines.

ASC, the builder and maintainer of the nation’s six Collins class submarines, also will be the lucrative sustainment program for nuclear-powered submarines, starting with Virginia class boats to be obtained from the United States and followed by an Adelaide-built fleet.

Speaking at the March 21 announcement, Defence Minister Richard Marles said the three governments in the security pact were “working at a pace to make this happen (nuclear-powered submarine construction)”.