The leaders of the US, UK and Australia have unveiled new details of their plan to build a fleet of next-generation nuclear-powered submarines.
Under the Aux deal, Australia will first receive at least three nuclear-powered submarines from the US.
The allies will also work together to build a new fleet using advanced technology, including reactors built by Rolls-Royce in the UK.
The agreement aims to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
Speaking with other leaders in San Diego, California, US President Joe Biden stressed the boats would not carry nuclear weapons and would not jeopardize Australia’s commitment to being a nuclear-weapon-free country.
Under an agreement announced on Monday, members of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) will be stationed at US and UK submarine bases from this year to gain the skills needed to operate the submarines.
From 2027, the US and UK will base a small number of nuclear submarines at a RAN base in Perth, Western Australia, before buying three American Virginia-class submarines in the early 2030s – with options to buy two more.
Subsequently, the plan is to design and build an entirely new nuclear-powered submarine for the British and Australian navies, called the SSN-AUKUS.
The attack craft will be built in the UK and Australia to British designs, but will use technology from all three countries.
The interim and future boats will give Australia submarines that can travel further and faster than its current fleet, with cruise missiles that can hit targets on land and at sea.
President Biden said the three countries are committed to ensuring the region remains free and open. He was accompanied by the Prime Ministers of Australia and the United Kingdom – Anthony Albany and Rishi Sunak respectively.
“In establishing this new partnership, we are showing again how democracies can deliver our own security and prosperity … not just for us, but for the entire world,” he said.
As part of Monday’s announcement, the US also pledged a total of $4.6bn (£3.7bn) over the next few years to increase its submarine-building capacity and improve the maintenance of the Virginia-class submarines. .
Australia’s Anthony Albany said the submarine project would create thousands of new jobs and was “the largest investment in Australia’s defense capability in its history”.
“It will be an Australian autonomous capability, commanded by the Royal Australian Navy and – maintained by Australian workers in Australian shipyards – with construction starting this decade,” Mr Albany said.
He also noted that the agreement marks the first time in 65 years and only the second time in history that the United States has shared its nuclear propulsion technology.
Britain’s Prime Minister Sunak said the challenges to global stability had grown in the 18 months since the deal was unveiled.
“Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, China’s escalating aggression, the destabilizing behavior of Iran and North Korea – all threaten to create a world defined by danger, chaos and division.”
As part of his visit to the US, Mr Sunak also pledged to increase defense spending by around £5bn ($6bn) over the next two years to counter threats from hostile states.
This agreement has been repeatedly criticized by China. Mao Ning, a spokesman for Beijing’s foreign ministry, reiterated Beijing’s position last week that the deal risks triggering an arms race and “harms peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region”.
“We urge the US, UK and Australia to abandon the Cold War mentality and zero-sum game, fulfill their international obligations faithfully, and for regional peace and stability,” he said. Collaborate more.”
Speaking of concerns about the West increasing its military presence in the Indo-Pacific, US National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan insisted that Washington had no intention of creating a new NATO-like alliance.
While the three leaders are keen to emphasize how the deal will strengthen their cooperation and contribute to global stability, it has not been without its political consequences.
In 2021, Australia scrapped a multi-million-dollar submarine deal with France in favor of a trilateral deal – leading to a political rift with Paris.
JEE News says the deal makes the Australian military more closely aligned with the US and UK than ever before.
The Australian government is hailing the deal’s strategic importance as well as the fact that it will create thousands of jobs.
But our correspondent added that the country faces some very delicate diplomacy going forward.
China is Australia’s most important trading partner, and the question will be whether Australia can strengthen its military ties with the US while promoting a broader trade relationship with Beijing.
The government says Aukus will cost Australia up to A$368bn (£201bn) over the next three decades.
No decision has been made on a future east coast submarine base, although Port Kamble near Wollongong, 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Sydney, is considered a possible site.
A local official there said his community was worried about the prospect of a nuclear submarine base nearby.
“It’s alarming that this could make us a potential military target,” Greens Party councilor Keith Blackie told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
“I think it’s a potential sovereign threat for Australia to align itself with the US and the UK.”
