NO other countries will be invited to be an official member of AUKUS.
This was Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s response amid reports that Japan could join the group.
However, Australia, the U.S., and the UK are willing to enlist Japan’s help for the second pillar of AUKUS cooperation.
Under the first pillar of the AUKUS agreement, Australia will deliver nuclear-powered attack submarines to Australia.
It will cost Australia up to $368 billion to build a new fleet of eight nuclear-propelled submarines by 2055 which will enter service in the 2040s.
Meanwhile, Pillar 2 focuses on sharing military technology and cooperation in areas including quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and cyber technology, which the three countries want Japan to be a part of.
Japan’s strengths and its close defense partnership with all three countries made Japan a perfect partner for Pillar 2, according to the Pentagon.
