It may be that Canberra's decision, announced Tuesday, to purchase a fleet of 12 French submarines to replace its aging Collins-class submarines will prove to be the right outcome arrived at by a messy process that is bound to leave bruised feelings in Tokyo.
There were three equally compelling considerations at play in the decision on the next-generation submarines: the submarine that best met Australia's distinctive defense requirements; the need to manage alliance and bilateral relations with Washington, Tokyo, Berlin and France; and the wish to generate employment and create-cum-sustain domestic defense manufacturing capability. It remains to be seen if the decision to go with the French option will create more irritable dissatisfaction than domestic and international recognition that it was the correct choice.
The announcement caps the most important naval acquisition decision for Australia's defense industry in 30 years. The deal is worth 50 billion Australian dollars and the submarines will be the most potent weapon in Australia's military armory. Most, if not all, of the submarines will be built in Adelaide using Australian steel. The first of them are scheduled to be commissioned in the early 2030s and they should be in service into the 2060s.