“The opportunity for our Navy personnel to learn from our AUKUS partners demonstrates meaningful progress along Australia’s pathway to acquiring nuclear-powered submarines,” Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said.
In a new op-ed, Bill Greenwalt of AEI warns that the Biden administration has not publicly provided workable legislative proposals that would take aim at the ITAR challenges for AUKUS.
"We very much view this as a generational partnership, one that we're leaning into, and one that we believe will help generate capability and capacity in Australia," Eric Chewning, HII's executive vice president for strategy and development, told a group of reporters.
The proposed legislation would begin the process of knocking down key legal hurdles impending the AUKUS security pact.
The watchdog's report is unsparing in outlining the cost increases and schedule delays for a majority of Defense Department programs.
A senior Navy officer recently said the budget is an "endorsement of the capability."
One analyst called the new agreement the biggest engineering project in 75 years for Australia, but there are big hurdles that need to be cleared.
The plans include selling at least three Americans attack subs in the early 2030s and the UK, Australians producing a brand new sub, filled with American tech, in the 2040s.
The new budget request seeks the second Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine and two Virginia-class boats, but lacks amphibs, a point sure to irk lawmakers.
"Well, there's one country in the region that's undergone the biggest peacetime militarization since the Second World War and that's the People's Republic of China," said Australian Shadow Defense Minister Andrew Hastie. "So they can make comments like they have, but it's kind of ironic given what they're doing with their military."
Australia faces "huge political risk in this, and huge costs. It's going to be an extremely bumpy ride," says Malcolm Davis of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.
"I remain an optimist that we're going to be able to work our way through those challenges with respect to ITAR," Adm. Mike Gilday told Breaking Defense during a recent visit to Sydney.
Key members of the House Armed Services Committee pushed back at the idea that AUKUS could be a "zero sum game" for nuclear submarines.
"We are concerned that what was initially touted as a 'do no harm' opportunity to support Australia and the United Kingdom and build long-term competitive advantages for the U.S. and its Pacific allies, may be turning into a zero-sum game for scarce, highly advanced U.S. SSNs," wrote the SASC heads.