The leaders of the U.S., Australia and the U.K. have established a pathway for Australia to acquire nuclear-powered submarines through a trilateral security partnership called AUKUS as part of efforts to ensure security, strengthen deterrence and advance stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
The AUKUS alliance, which was introduced in September 2021, will provide the Royal Australian Navy with the conventionally armed submarine, dubbed SSN-AUKUS, that will be based on the U.K.’s next-generation SSN design and integrate submarine technologies from the U.S., the White House said Monday.
Australia and the U.K. will build and deploy the submarine as part of the plan, which seeks to strengthen the undersea capabilities and submarine industrial bases of the three countries.
The alliance will implement a phased approach to help Australia sustain its undersea capabilities. The approach includes embedded personnel and port visits, submarine rotational forces and sale of U.S. Virginia-class submarines to Australia.
The U.K. and Australia intend to kick off construction work on SSN-AUKUS before the end of 2030. The British government plans to hand over the first submarine to its naval force in the late 2030s, while Australia intends to have the first SSN-AUKUS delivered to its navy in the early 2040s.
The Australian government will manage all radioactive waste that will emerge from the nuclear-powered submarine program in accordance with its nuclear non-proliferation obligation and other international commitments.
BAE Systems said it will play a role in the delivery of SSN-AUKUS submarines to Australia.
