The United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia will begin joint development of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) as part of the AUKUS defense partnership. The new systems are intended to help protect undersea infrastructure and strengthen the military capabilities of the allies in the Indo-Pacific region. This was reported by Sky News, according to UNN.
Details
The project was announced by the defense ministers of the three countries during the Shangri-La Dialogue conference in Singapore. According to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, the new program involves creating multi-purpose payloads for unmanned underwater vehicles.
Allies strengthen undersea capabilities
This landmark project will ensure the creation of a suite of highly adaptive multi-purpose payloads for unmanned underwater vehicles designed to support undersea operations and maintain our collective advantage in the maritime domain
UK Defense Secretary John Healey emphasized that the new drones will help respond to threats to undersea cables and pipelines.
This will rapidly provide our forces with cutting-edge battlefield technology as we jointly produce a range of advanced sensors and weapons systems for underwater drones
According to Healey, AUKUS nations must accelerate the implementation of joint projects.
For too long in AUKUS, we have talked too much and done too little
The AUKUS pact was established in 2021 as part of efforts by the US, UK, and Australia to deter China's growing influence in the region.