Australia likely to buy up to 5 Virginia class nuclear submarines as part of Aukus deal

US President Biden will host leaders of Australia and Britain in San Diego next week to chart a way forward for provision of the submarines to Canberra

Over the next five years, Australian workers will come to American submarine shipyards to observe and train

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Aukus is expected to be Australia’s biggest-ever defence project. Photo: US navy/Reuters

Published: 8:52am, 9 Mar 2023Updated: 12:43pm, 9 Mar 2023

Australia is expected to buy up to five US Virginia class nuclear-powered submarines in the 2030s as part of a landmark defence agreement between Washington, Canberra and London, four US officials said on Wednesday, in a deal that would present a new challenge to China.

The agreement, known as the Aukus pact, will have multiple stages with at least one US submarine visiting Australian ports in the coming years and end in the late 2030s with a new class of submarines being built with British designs and American technology, one of the officials said.

US President Joe Biden will host leaders of Australia and Britain in San Diego on Monday to chart a way forward for provision of the nuclear-powered submarines and other hi-tech weaponry to Australia.

China has condemned the effort by the Western allies, who are seeking to counter Beijing’s military build-up, pressure on Taiwan and increasingly muscular deployments in the contested South China Sea.

Two of the officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that after the annual port visits, the United States would forward deploy some submarines in Western Australia by around 2027.