Australia today formally committed to a highly controversial program to equip itself with nuclear-powered submarines as part of a new defense alliance with Britain and the United States.
Secretary of Defense Peter Dutton has signed an agreement with British and US diplomats to exchange “information on nuclear-powered warships” between their countries.
This is the first agreement signed and made public since the announcement in September by the three countries of their new defense agreement, named AUKUS, in order to address the growing strategic tensions between the US and China in the Pacific Ocean.
The alliance was accompanied by the cancellation by Australia of a large contract for the purchase of twelve conventional French submarines for 90 billion Australian dollars (55 billion euros), which caused a sharp dispute between Paris and Canberra.
The deal will help Australia complete an 18-month study to acquire submarines, Dutton said after signing the agreement in Canberra today with US Plenipotentiary Michael Goldman and British High Commissioner to Australia Victoria Trindel.
The details of the acquisition of the submarines are yet to be decided, especially whether Australia will choose US or British nuclear-powered attack submarines.
“Thanks to the access to information provided by this agreement, as well as the decades of experience of our British and American partners in the field of nuclear submarines, Australia will also be able to be a responsible and reliable operator of this technology,” Dutton told an announcement.
Ahead of the signing ceremony, US President Joe Biden said in a memorandum approving the agreement that the latter would improve the “mutual defense position” of the three countries.
Under AUKUS, Australia is expected to acquire eight state-of-the-art nuclear-powered submarines capable of carrying out large-scale covert missions.
The alliance has angered China, which has called it an “extremely irresponsible” threat to regional stability.
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