U.S. nuclear submarine emerges within meters of a controversial Chinese lease: “Not one of our partners.”

The Australian city of Darwin, located in the northern part of the country, has recently received an unexpected visitor. Just a few meters from the East Arm port, a facility leased to a Chinese company, a U.S. nuclear-powered submarine has arrived.

An unexpected arrival, in the context of growing tensions between the United States and much of the rest of the world, starting with China, and with entities like the European Union due to tariffs. This submarine, the USS Minnesota, has been in Australian waters for weeks.

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After being docked at the Australian naval base HMAS Stirling, where the personnel had the chance to learn firsthand about a type of submarine that will be received under the AUKUS military agreement (formed by Australia, the UK, and the U.S.), its visit to the Darwin port caused surprise.

This is because, as captured by NT News, it was seen emerging just a few meters from East Arm port, a facility leased to the Chinese company Landbridge since 2015. And this visit wasn’t the only one: along with the submarine came the USS Emory, tasked with providing logistical support to these types of maritime vehicles.

Criticism of the lease

The arrival comes amid growing geopolitical tensions, while the future of Darwin port is being debated. This comes despite the fact that a decade ago, the Australian Liberal Party chose to lease these facilities to the Chinese company Landbridge, owned by billionaire Ye Cheng, for a staggering 99 years.

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Luke Gosling, a federal labor MP, recently stated that there would soon be “more to say” about the possible return of the facilities to Australian hands. “The Northern Territory government owns the port; it has leased it, foolishly, to a foreign company that has very close ties with a foreign government that is not one of our traditional security partners,” Gosling said.

On the other hand, James Paterson, the Minister for Home Affairs, agreed that the port should be returned to Australian authorities but called for concrete actions, not just words. “Gosling was there several weeks ago saying that the government was about to do this, and since then we haven’t heard anything further. For the national interest, I believe it should return to Australian ownership, and I hope that happens very soon.”