Production capacity and spending will be back on track in time for vessel delivery to Australia in the early 2030s, the US Navy has assured.
would undermine commitments under the AUKUS defence pact, suggesting the vessel output needed would be back on track by 2028.
Mr Albanese maintained Australia’s acquisition of submarines was unaffected by the cut in production.“Our plans are very clear going forward. We have an agreement that was reached with the United States and the UK,” he said.Defence Minister Richard Marles said: “There is absolutely a rock-solid commitment to Australia, and that’s a commitment which has been reiterated by the US government.
Rear Admiral Ben Reynolds, Under Secretary of the Navy, said the Pentagon would be on track to build two submarines a year by 2028.The budget set aside $US3.9 billion in 2025 and $US11.1 billion over five years to build up the submarine industrial base. A further $US3.3 billion had earlier been sought from Congress.
Some congressmen suggested that the cut was a typical bargaining chip to extract further spending concessions from Republicans for other areas of defence that are currently capped. “Attack submarines are the crown jewels of the US military and critical to deterring China,” he said. “Slashing production weakens American power. We cannot afford to short change our deterrent during this dangerous moment.HII, one of the two main US submarine manufacturers, said it would be “inappropriate to speculate on the specific outcomes which will result from congressional consideration of this request”.
“I fully expect sceptical members in Congress to raise these concerns over AUKUS. Key will be a positive and sizeable investment in growing the US production of by Australia to save AUKUS,” Mr Sadler said.
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