If Trump does pull the plug, we will be left defenceless

All it took was a headline saying the Pentagon was undertaking a review into the AUKUS partnership for us to realise a frightening scenario: Australia being left to fend for itself during these turbulent times.

This is just after the Chinese PLA had completed its circumnavigation of the continent, had undertaken live-fire drills in the Tasman Sea, and when the nation is totally incapable of putting up the slightest of deterrence measures. Yet following the extreme negligence of defence over recent decades, both by state and federal governments, Australia has only itself to blame for the precarious position it now finds itself in.

Ron Hobba, Camberwell, Vic

The possibility of an informal meeting between Anthony Albanese and Donald Trump at the sidelines of the G 7 summit is most interesting. Most of the Prime Minister’s public appearances and briefings have been highly orchestrated behind the scenes. Albanese has been protected from deep and searching questioning and hardly ever answers a pertinent question with full knowledge of the subject matter.

His main problem with President Trump, it seems, is that Albanese’s minders won’t have a clue how Trump is going to behave. It would be fortunate for Albanese, if this meeting is held, that it does happen in public.

One of the main topics would be AUKUS. It would not surprise me that, once Trump realises America will be expected to do the heavy lifting, AUKUS is going to be greatly modified. This will be a victory for the left of the Labor Party.

Peter Surkitt, Sandringham, Vic

What can Anthony Albanese give to support Trump’s “America first” agenda in order to keep AUKUS alive? Virtually nothing except for one thing: nuclear fuel. Trump’s America is one of 31 signatories to the UN Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy by 2050.

Despite Australia having the world largest uranium reserves, the world largest uranium ore body at BHP’s Olympic Dam Mine in South Australia, and world class mining and mineral processing operations exporting to 43 countries, we supply only 10 per cent of the world’s current needs. Kazakhstan and Canada now dominate world uranium supply despite having lower uranium reserves than Australia.

The only thing stopping Australia taking the lead for the coming tripling in nuclear fuel requirements is outdated government mine and export limits. All we need to do is to release our miners to expand to supply the ­increasing world demand. No taxpayer subsidies, no billions handed out to billionaires, just get the government out of the way.

Ian Brake, Mackay, Qld

So the Trump administration is asking the Pentagon to review AUKUS. It was predictable that this would occur and is not before time. Australia, particularly under Anthony Albanese, has shown nothing but contempt for our responsibilities when it comes to our defence ties with the US and our role in the Asia Pacific region. Our approach really seems to be “we will give lip service to defence but we hope this will be enough for you to come to our aid when there is a crisis”.

The ADF has been so degraded over recent years that it is highly unlikely we could mount any sort of response to any real threat. We’re told the Prime Minister has the gift of the gab and will stand us in good stead when dealing with President Trump. Is this serious? Australia in its present form does not deserve the support of the US, and I fear for the safety and security of our nation under this government.

Nicholas Milns, Pelican Waters, Qld

It appears Australia is heavily ­relying on the AUKUS pact as a first line of defence. But given the current government’s enthusiasm for ­provoking the US, I would suggest when push comes to shove AUKUS won’t provide as much real protection for Australia.

Bruce Collison, Banks, ACT

It’s unfortunate that we seem to be so behind with military preparedness and military capability. We need full submarine capability now rather than in a decade or two when there may be new leadership in China and Russia.

Our build-up is far too late; considering the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence and unmanned drone capabilities, the new submarines may end up far behind in relevance.

Roger Capps, Tusmore, SA