US President Joe Biden and Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in October. Photo: SAUL LOEB / AFP
Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has hailed the US Congress for authorising the sale of nuclear submarines to another country for the first time, allowing the AUKUS defence partnership of Australia, the US and Britain to go ahead.
More than two-thirds of the US House of Representatives voted in favour of a defence policy bill on Thursday that included a record US$886 billion (NZ$1.4 trillion) in annual military spending and authorised policies such as aid for Ukraine and push back against China in the Indo-Pacific.
"This is an extraordinary achievement," Albanese said in an interview with radio network 2GB on Friday, adding he had spoken to more than 100 US lawmakers in support of the AUKUS provisions.
"To get this legislation passed means that AUKUS can go ahead, means that Australia will have access to those Virginia-class submarines which are nuclear-propelled and that will be so important for Australia's national security."
The AUKUS pact to develop nuclear-powered submarines and other high technology weapons is Australia's most expensive defence project, with a US$244b (NZ$393b) price tag over three decades, but relied on US approval to share sensitive technology.
Australia said it wants to see an Australian-flagged nuclear powered submarine in the water in the early 2030s to avoid a capability gap as its existing Collins class diesel-electric fleet retires. A new class of Australian-built AUKUS submarine is not expected until early 2040.
Albanese travelled to Washington in October to push for the legislation - required for the sale of three US Virginia class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia, and a raft of other measures to jointly develop defence technology - to be passed this year.
"This is the first time in American history that America and its Congress have authorised the sale of nuclear-powered submarines," Defence Minister Richard Marles said in a Sky News television interview on Friday.
Marles said the legislation enables Australians to work in the nuclear enterprise in the US, and allows Australia to maintain US nuclear submarines in Australia, which is planned to begin next year.
Most importantly, it exempts Australia from the US defence control export regime, he said, adding that it "genuinely creates what we've been seeking, which is a seamless defence industrial base across Australia and the US and with the UK".
- This story was first published by Reuters