EXCLUSIVE: US supremo Elbridge Colby never sought Taiwan military commitment, says ex-defence official

Did the Trump Administration really ask Australia if it would go to war with China to defend Taiwan?

The Financial Times reported on the weekend that US Defence official Elbridge Colby asked Australia to commit to defending Taiwan in a war against China.

Dominating the news for days, the report fuelled a perception the AUKUS submarine pact with the US and Britain could drag Australia into conflict with its top trading partner.

The Lowy Institute tank described it as an “AUKUS ultimatum”. The Conversation website for academics referred to Washington’s “war demands”. The Australian complained about the Trump Administration’s “arrogance and ineptitude”.

The exact words used by Mr Colby, the under secretary of defence for policy, are unclear, given it was a private discussion.

But one of the few Australians who knows Mr Colby well, former intelligence and defence official Ross Babbage, is adamant the conversation was not a demand or attempt to lock Australian into a potential war.

“What Bridge Colby is pressing Australia to provide is misunderstood and I think the reasons why he is seeking clarity is misunderstood,” Mr Babbage said, referring to Mr Colby by his common first name. “He is seeking sufficient clarity on the in-principal support the US could expect in a range of contingencies.”

In Washington, former prime minister and Malcolm Turnbull on Wednesday became the latest AUKUS critic to weigh in on the debate about Australia’s potential military contribution to a war with China, including the Royal Australian Navy’s submarines, either nuclear or diesel powered.

“No Australian government can commit any of its defence assets in advance to some future conflict,” Mr Turnbull told the Sydney Morning Herald. “And the American government wouldn’t do that.”

Conversation confusion

Currently writing a new national defence strategy for the US, Mr Colby was trying to understand Australia’s views on potential conflict between China and Taiwan, a priority of the new US government, according to Dr Babbage, a former head of alliance policy in the Defence Department who continues to consult to the department.

A spokesperson for the US embassy in Canberra said: “The US has long-standing alliances with both Australia and Japan. We regularly consult with our allies on a range of regional and global issues.”

The confusion over the conversation is an example of the challenge Australia faces working with an unpredictable US president who regards China as America’s greatest threat.

Australian ministers, including the prime minister, have declined to commit to Taiwan’s defence. But Australia is a hosting a large international military exercise this week, Talisman Sabre, which military leaders don’t even pretend isn’t directed at China.

In Beijing this week, Anthony Albanese reaffirmed Australia’s opposition to Taiwan independence in a meeting with President Xi Jinping, according to an official Chinese account of their meeting.

Asked on Wednesday if the description was accurate, the Prime Minister said: “I agreed that Australia has had a longstanding bipartisan position that has supported the One China policy.”

Taiwan and China formally regard each other as different parts of the same country operating under separate governments. Intensifying military exercises around the island have led some analysts to speculate China could invade sometime within the next five years.

Under Mr Colby and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Trump Administration is trying to shift military resources to the Pacific region to deter China from an invasion.

That is proving difficult given the demands of the wars in Ukraine and around Israel, and amplifies the importance of allies in the Pacific, including Australia.