Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy followed Roshena Campbell on ABC News’ Afternoon Briefing , where he was asked about the head of AUKUS in Australia announcing his retirement.
Vice-Admiral Jonathan Mead will resign in mid-2026, which host Patricia Karvelas noted was only 12 months before Australia is set to receive the first submarine from the US under the AUKUS deal.
Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead.Credit: SMH
“Isn’t the timing a little chaotic? I mean, don’t you need stability at the top right now?,” Karvelas asked Conroy.
“Not at all,” Conroy replied.
“This is something where Admiral Mead has been in charge of this program for three and a half years, and previous to that was in charge of the nuclear taskforce, so he has had a very long length of service in this role. Importantly, Admiral Mead will continue to serve until the middle of next year, which gives us plenty of time to identify and appoint his successor.”
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Conroy also said he expected a Pentagon review of AUKUS to be released soon, after the Pentagon said overnight it was in its final stages.
“We will see what this review brings in terms recommendations, but as I said, President Trump has said AUKUS is all steam ahead,” Conroy said.
“We have USS Vermont, producing a Virginia-class submarine, going through in-water maintenance, another step in us being sovereign ready.”
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