Australia’s bid to acquire nuclear-powered submarines is making “significant progress,” Canberra said yesterday in a joint statement with the UK after a virtual summit between the leaders of the two sides.
US and British experts are in Australia to advise on the project — announced in September last year under a new defense alliance between Australia, the UK and the US called AUKUS — amid talks between Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Australia plans to arm the submarines with conventional weapons, but has yet to decide on the details of the program, including whether to opt for a fleet based on US or British nuclear-powered attack submarines.
“All three partners have made significant progress in their collective endeavor to provide the Royal Australian Navy with a conventional-armed nuclear-powered submarine capability at the earliest possible date,” Australia and Britain said.
“Leaders further welcomed the presence in Australia of UK and US officials to provide expert advice on the many facets of nuclear stewardship needed to operate a nuclear-powered submarine capability,” they said.
Forged amid growing Chinese influence in the Pacific region, the AUKUS alliance would make Australia the only non-nuclear weapons power with nuclear-powered submarines, which can travel long distances without surfacing.
Johnson and Morrison said that they were committed to the three-nation defense alliance “as a cornerstone of their shared efforts to promote an open, inclusive and resilient Indo-Pacific.”
Australia and Britain said they were advancing in joint discussions with the US on cybercapabilities, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and unspecified “additional undersea capabilities.”
A study released in December last year by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said that the nuclear-powered submarine program would cost more than US$80 billion and take decades to complete.
It said the vessels would offer a significant advantage in deterring aggression from China or elsewhere.
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