Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles spoke at a press conference on Sept. 14, and confirmed that the U.S. would be able to “use planned defense facilities in Western Australia to help deliver submarines under the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal,” reported CNN.
The AUKUS pact includes Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. in a security agreement to “promote a free and open Indo-Pacific that is secure and stable”—a not-so-subtle warning to China that U.S. activity in the region could intensify; it was announced in September 2021 by the Biden administration, and is currently under review by the Trump administration.
The agreement allows Australia to buy nuclear-powered attack submarines; the rotational basing of U.S. and U.K. nuclear-powered attack submarines in Australia, and collaboration in the development of several key advanced technologies, such as undersea capabilities, AI capabilities, and hypersonic / counter-hypersonic capabilities, among others.
