AUKUS nuclear sub deal's specifics are made known

Australia has followed through on its controversial military partnership with the US and UK, agreeing to buy as many as five nuclear-powered submarines from Washington and start work on developing a new generation of subs with Britain. The initial deal includes the purchase of three Virginia-class submarines from the US and an option to buy two more of the vessels. Plans also call for developing new submarines, called SSN-AUKUS, that will be built in the UK and Australia with US technology and support. President Joe Biden said the three allies were at an inflection point in history, where the hard work of enhancing deterrence and promoting stability is going to affect the prospect of peace for decades to come. Chinese officials have argued that the AUKUS venture violates the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) because it involves the transfer of nuclear technology to a state that's not yet nuclear-armed.

However, the Australian Foreign Ministry has argued that since the vessels won't be nuclear-armed, they won't break with the country's anti-proliferation commitment. The submarine agreement marks just the second time in US history – and the first time in 65 years – that Washington has shared its nuclear-propulsion technology with another country.