A defence pact to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines is proceeding under the Trump administration, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday, dispelling speculation that the deal signed under former president Joe Biden would be dropped.
Aukus, the 2021 security partnership between Australia, the UK and the US, came under intense scrutiny after US President Donald Trump took office in January. His approval marks a rare endorsement of a Biden-era policy.
“At the direction of the President, Aukus is full-steam ahead,” Mr Rubio said at a meeting with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Australian peers, Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles.
The Aukus deal will see Australia receiving a fleet of submarines from the US and would provide for co-operation in developing an array of warfare technologies.
The submarines, the sale of which will begin in 2032, lie at the heart of Australia's strategy of improving its long-range strike capabilities in the Pacific, particularly against China.
The deal could cost Canberra up to US$235 billion over the next 30 years, and also includes the technology to build its own vessels in the future.
Australia had a major bust-up with France in 2021 when it cancelled a multi-billion-dollar deal to buy a fleet of diesel-powered submarines from Paris and go with the Aukus programme instead.
