Australia denies promise to support US in Taiwan conflict over submarine deal.

Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles denied that the country had promised to support the US in any military conflict over Taiwan in return for a deal to acquire US nuclear-powered attack submarines. The AUKUS project, which involves Australia, the US and Britain, aims to produce and operate a new submarine class, SSN-AUKUS. The deal is necessary given China's military buildup in the region, which Australia has labelled the largest since World War Two. China views Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the option of force to take the island back.