U.S., UK aid to Australia's acquisition of nuclear submarines "sheer act of nuclear proliferation": Chinese envoy

Wang Qun (R, Front), Chinese envoy to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna, is interviewed after a meeting of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) Joint Commission in Vienna, Austria, on June 12, 2021. (Xinhua/Guo Chen)

"This contradicts the purpose, objective and core obligation of the NPT to the detriment of the international nuclear non-proliferation regime with the NPT at its core and on-going international efforts on this front," Wang stated.

VIENNA, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese diplomat on Thursday expressed China's "grave concern" at the pronounced assistance by the United States and the United Kingdom to Australia's acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines.

Addressing the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Board of Governors meeting here, Wang Qun, Chinese envoy to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna, described the trilateral move as "sheer act of nuclear proliferation".

The U.S. and the UK, both nuclear weapon states, and are state parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) which prevents proliferation of nuclear weapons and technologies, the core obligation for its state parties, Wang stated.

He stressed that such assistance "will apparently give rise to proliferation of nuclear materials and technologies by openly providing assistance to Australia", a non-nuclear weapon state, in its acquisition and building of the nuclear-powered submarine.