US, Britain, Australia leaders unveil plan to provide Aukus nuclear submarines

Australia will purchase up to five conventionally armed, nuclear powered US submarines starting early in the 2030s followed a decade later by production of a new class of “SSN Aukus” nuclear-powered submarines developed in partnership with the US and Britain to counter China’s growing regional footprint, American officials said.

The formal announcement by President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in San Diego on Monday comes 18 months after the three nations unveiled a military alliance dubbed Aukus that has stoked Beijing’s ire.

“We believe in a world that protects freedom and respects human rights, the rule of law, the independence of sovereign states, and the rules-based international order,” the leaders said in a joint statement on Monday.