Australia, UK sign treaty to advance AUKUS and nuclear sub development

Australia and the United Kingdom signed a treaty July 26 with aims to deepen long-term cooperation on developing nuclear-power submarines under the AUKUS agreement, a statement by both defence ministries said.

The Geelong Treaty, which Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister and U.K.’s Secretary of State for Defense signed in Victoria, puts a 50-year commitment to collaborate on the AUKUS program into writing.

As part of the AUKUS Pillar I Agreement, the U.S., the United Kingdom and Australia are working together to help Australia build up the capability to operate, maintain and ultimately build its own nuclear-powered attack submarines. The U.S. plans to sell Australia three Virginia-class attack submarines (SSNs) in the 2030s before they expect to start building their own SSN-AUKUS boats in the 2040s, two used boats and one new construction vessel. If work on the Australian boats ends up running late, they have the option to buy up to two more U.S. SSNs.

As of now, SSN-AUKUS submarine design will be shared between the U.K. and Australia but built separately, with the U.K. planning to deliver the first boats by the late 2030s. The Geelong Treaty stretches the commitment into the 2070s for the U.K. and Australia.

The treaty also includes a deal wherein a U.K. Astute-class submarine can rotate through Western Australia’s naval base, HMAS Sterling.

“The Treaty builds on the strong foundation of trilateral cooperation between Australia, the UK and the United States, advancing the shared objectives of the AUKUS partnership,” the joint statement said. “It will enable the development of SSN-AUKUS and resilient trilateral supply chains.”