In a column posted on Sept. 20, Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins denounced the AUKUS deal as reckless post-imperial nostalgia. “Crewed submarines are approaching obsolescence, near-useless in an age of ‘transparent’ oceans and underwater drones. Like tanks, they drip with cost, inefficiency and a craving to fight outdated wars. But defence contracts have a corporate and political existence that transcends utility. If Australia seriously thinks China is a threat, it might as well have some new gold-plated weapons ready,” he writes. “However, this particular equipment contract appears to have morphed into a new military alliance in the Asia-Pacific region. [Boris] Johnson’s defense adviser, Stephen Lovegrove, declares it to be ‘a profound strategic shift.’ Unless Downing Street is clueless, it was clearly intended to enrage China, which it duly has, as well as humiliate France, which it also has.”