NEWS

AUKUS eyes space radar

Radar sites in the three countries will peer 35,000 kilometers into space.

Agence France-Presse · Dec 3, 2023, 12:20 AM

(From L) Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps hold a press conference during the AUKUS Defense Ministerial Meeting in Mountain View, California, on December 1, 2023. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP)

The defense chiefs of the AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) partnership met in California on Friday, touting high-tech co-operation on deep space radar, artificial intelligence and quantum computing systems aimed at bolstering their armed forces in the face of growing global threats, including from China.

The tripartite gathering is the latest step in a strengthening alliance that has already seen agreements for Canberra to buy at least three nuclear-powered Virginia-class submarines and for Britain and Australia to build a new model involving US technology.

On Friday, the focus was on the cutting edge, including the development of what they called a "Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability" program, which will see radar detection sites in all three countries by the end of the decade, with the capacity to peer 35,000 kilometers into space.