U.S., U.K. and Australia deepen subsea security pact with drones

The Aukus alliance members -- Australia, U.K. and the U.S. -- announced Saturday that they will develop advanced underwater drone systems and further deepen their maritime relationship that will see American submarines in Australia by next year. This photo from the Australia, Department of Defence shows an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle. Photo by Handout /Getty Images

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The Aukus alliance members — Australia, U.K. and the U.S. — announced Saturday that they will develop advanced underwater drone systems and further deepen their maritime relationship that will see American submarines in Australia by next year.

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The agreements, announced in Singapore by the countries’ defence ministers, include investing in the development of systems and weapons for uncrewed undersea vehicles.

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The initiative “will deliver a suite of highly adaptable multi-mission UUV payloads designed to support undersea operations and maintain our collective advantage in the maritime domain,” said US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.

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He didn’t detail the systems, which are generically termed “payload and effectors.”

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“This will rapidly give our forces the very most advanced battlefield technologies, as together we produce a range of cutting-edge sensors and weapons systems” for undersea drones, said U.K. Defence Secretary John Healey.

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Hegseth and Healey, along with Australia’s Richard Marles, also said Saturday that U.S. submarine rotations are on track to begin by the end of next year at HMAS Stirling in Western Australia.

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The three nations signed the defence accord in 2021, under President Donald Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden. After a review by the Trump administration, the US reiterated its commitment to the project after a review last year.

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Under Pillar One of Aukus, the U.S. is to sell Australia three of its nuclear-powered Virginia-class submarines, and all three nations will work to design and build new subs over the coming decades. Pillar Two is related to sharing advanced technology, such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence and advanced weaponry.

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The new agreement announced Saturday included a plan to “streamline” the Australian sub-purchase plans by limiting them to in-service ships, rather than the earlier planned mix of used and new.

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An Australian government official said the decision will simplify training, maintenance and supply chains if the U.S. subs are all the same variant. Canberra also still has the option to purchase up to two additional subs if needed, similar to the original agreement.

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—With assistance from Gerry Doyle.

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