Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, said that the AUKUS nuclear submarine partnership between Australia and the United States will be beneficial to the United States. It is also the type of "burden-sharing" deal Donald Trump talked about.

In an interview published by Australia's Lowy Institute on Tuesday, Sullivan expressed his confidence that AUKUS will endure under Trump, since it improves U.S. military capability in the Indo-Pacific region and Australia contributes to the U.S. industry base.

The trilateral AUKUS agreement, signed in 2021, is Australia's largest defence project. It will cost A$368 billion (approximately $245 billion) in 2055. Australia will buy several Virginia-class subs from the United States, while building a nuclear-powered new class of submarine in Britain.

"The United States benefits from burden sharing – exactly what Mr Trump has spoken about a lot," Sullivan said in reference to the AUKUS Agreement.

Australia has agreed that it will invest $3 billion into U.S. shipyards which build Virginia-class submarines, which are expected to be sold in the early part of the next decade. This is despite concerns that an order backlog could threaten the deal.

Sullivan stated that the fact that Australia has nuclear-powered subs with conventional weapons enhances America's capability to deter in Indo-Pacific.

He added that "Australia contributes directly to the U.S. sub-marine industrial base" so we can build up this submarine capability and supply Australia with Virginia class Submarines in the near future, then with AUKUS Class Submarines in the long term.

Australia's Defence and Foreign Ministers met with their counterparts on Monday in London to discuss AUKUS progress for the first since a change in government in Britain and ahead of Trump being inaugurated as U.S. President in January.

John Healey, Britain's Defense Secretary, said that they discussed the "challenge of maintaining peace, stability and freedom of movement in the Indo-Pacific region, as well as the challenge of China, which is becoming more active and assertive within the region".

Richard Marles, Australia's Minister of Defence, said that they had discussed the acceleration of the process to bring Australian companies into Britain's supply chain for building submarines. (Reporting and editing by Jamie Freed; Kirstyn Needham)

(source: Reuters)