Defense officials and government advisers have said that Australia’s nuclear submarines are key to defending the country’s 36,000km coastline and maintaining the advantage against China, whose growing military presence means conflict can break out without warning.
They noted that shifting from Australia’s diesel-electric fleet to nuclear-powered submarines brings greater range, stealth, and strike capability. These crucial capabilities gave Canberra’s reliance on maritime cargo for trade and underwater cables for telecommunications.
“This is the biggest step forward in our military capability since the end of World War II,” Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said on Friday.
“This, more than anything else we can do, will allow us, in a rather difficult world, to take care of ourselves.”
Reuters has reported Australia is expected to purchase up to five US Virginia-class submarines in the 2030s before building a new British-designed submarine in South Australia under a joint venture dubbed AUKUS. Before 2027, US nuclear submarines are expected to be deployed in Western Australia.
The three countries are expected to announce plan details on Monday in San Diego. The switch from six conventional submarines to a nuclear-powered fleet has an estimated price tag of A$100 to A$170 billion ($66 to $112 billion), the biggest defense project in Australia’s history.
Peter Dean, the co-author of Australia’s Defense Strategy Review, noted that the United States has a significant advantage over the world’s largest navy, China’s, in nuclear submarines. The report was presented to the government last month. The release is scheduled for April.
As China grows its nuclear submarine fleet and advances farther into Australia’s northern waterways, he argued that Australia must have the same capabilities to dissuade or, if necessary, confront China.
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