Published: Less than 10 min ago
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is to go to the United States and meet President Joe Biden. During the meeting, the two countries are expected to present an agreement that Australia will acquire nuclear submarines.
After a year and a half of negotiations, Australia is expected to unveil its plans to acquire eight nuclear-powered submarines, which the prime minister has called the biggest increase in the country’s defense capabilities to date.
– I will meet President Biden in the United States. We will come back with details about the arrangement, says Anthony Albanese.
For the past 18 months, detailed talks have taken place between Washington, Canberra and London over Australia’s access to sensitive nuclear technology.
Worth tens of billions
It is the first time since the 1960s, when Britain received American help to design its own submarines, that US-created nuclear submarine technology has been exported.
The submarine contract between Australia and the US is estimated to be worth tens of billions of US dollars.
Nuclear submarines are difficult to detect and can travel long distances for a long time and are expected to be equipped with advanced cruise robots.
According to experts, the submarines are effective in deterring any potential enemy and also in launching unannounced attacks deep behind enemy lines.
Unrest in China
Beijing has expressed strong disapproval of the submarine deal, which it considers dangerous and designed to target China.
The agreement is signed within the framework of the military cooperation Aukus agreed between Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom with the aim of sharing advanced military and also civilian technology.
However, there are still many question marks surrounding the nuclear submarine agreement. For example, whether Australia will buy American or British submarines, where they will be built and when they will be ready to launch.