AUKUS

04.10.2023

AUKUS , Daily Current Affairs , RACE IAS : Best IAS Coaching in Kanpur 

Why in the news?

Recently the United Kingdom awarded a £4 billion (USD 4.9 billion) contract to three UK companies to design and build a nuclear-powered attack submarine as part of the country's AUKUS program with Australia and the United States.

important point:

• The first submarines under this contract will become available in the UK in the late 2030s and the first Australian submarines are planned to be delivered in the early 2040s.
• This contract has been signed with companies named BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Babcock for the design and construction of the submarine under the AUKUS programme.

About AUKUS:

• AUKUS is a term given to the security agreement made by Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• Plans for AUKUS were unveiled in September 2021 by the leaders of Australia, the UK and the US.
• The AUKUS program aims to enhance the capabilities of the UK, Australia and the US to counter regional security challenges, particularly China in the Asia-Pacific region.
• These submarines built under the AUKUS program will be known as SSN-AUKUS.
• These new submarines will be the largest, most advanced and most powerful attack submarines ever operated by the Royal Navy.

Pillars of AUKUS:

• Initiative Pillar: The first and largest part of the agreement is the submarine contract.
• Second Pillar: The second pillar is for comprehensive technology cooperation where there is scope for cooperation with other countries including India.

Importance of AUKUS:

• This alliance announced by Australia, Britain and America can be seen as a historic security agreement for the Asia-Pacific region, which can be very important as an effort to counter China.
• This will enable Australia to build nuclear powered submarines using technology provided by the US for the first time.

Submersible Components:

• It is designed to be launched from nuclear-capable attack submarines (SSNs) off Australia.
• In total, Australia has eight new nuclear submarines, including SSN-UK UK.
• Those submarines are based on British design but will have American technology or American combat systems.
• This will significantly increase Australia's maritime fort in the Indo-Pacific region.

However, these countries have made it clear that their aim is not to launch a nuclear attack on the new nuclear power. This is because Australia is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which prohibits it from acquiring or establishing nuclear weapons.