Australia and Britain have signed a new 50-year agreement to strengthen the existing trilateral AUCUS nuclear submarine program with the United States, reaffirming their commitment to the plan amid Washington's review of the trilateral pact, Kyodo reported, quoted by BTA.
According to the joint statement, the agreement will allow for comprehensive cooperation in the design, construction, operation, maintenance and destruction of new submarines built under the pact. It will also facilitate port visits to each other and allow a British submarine to be based at the Perth naval base on Australia's west coast on a rotational basis.
The new bilateral agreement between London and Canberra fits into the existing AUCUS trilateral security agreement, in which Washington is a party. Under the plan announced by the three countries in 2021, Australia will purchase nuclear submarines from the United States in the early 2030s, with its first indigenously built vessels to be delivered in early 2040.
In June, the United States announced a review of the AUCUS trilateral pact, seeking to ensure that the agreement is consistent with the "America First" agenda. President Donald Trump, Kyodo noted.
Speaking at a signing ceremony in the southeastern Australian city of Geelong on Saturday, British Defense Secretary John Healey said the new treaty would strengthen the Indo-Pacific region and NATO.