AUKUS jitters: Congressman wants Austal blocked from submarine deal

Washington| A member of the US Congress’s powerful new committee on China says he wants Australian company Austal stopped from building part of the nuclear-powered Virginia class submarines that are central to the AUKUS pact, because of his concerns the company could be the source of military secrets leaking to the Chinese.

Congressman Neal Dunn, who has previously flagged his misgivings about Austal building ships for the US Navy, told AFR Weekend on Thursday (Friday AEDT) that he wanted to speak to incoming US ambassador Kevin Rudd about the issue and that he was “shocked” to learn Austal was now building part of the most secretive military assets in the US.