Australia to get nuclear subs faster as Trump seeks to speed up AUKUS timeline

The U.S. wants to fast-track outfitting Australia with nuclear submarines under the trilateral agreement between the U.S., Australia and the U.K. to beef up Australia’s submarine force aimed at countering Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific. 

In the agreement, known as AUKUS, the U.S. will sell up to five Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines to Australia — slated for delivery as soon as 2032.

But Trump told reporters that he is eyeing a faster timeline, when asked if he was interested in speeding up the process. 

“Well we are doing that, yeah … we have them moving very, very quickly,” Trump told reporters Monday while meeting with Australia’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, at the White House. 

Even so, Trump also said that he didn’t believe that AUKUS was necessary to deter China as he touted his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who he is expected to meet with in South Korea later in October. 

“I don’t think we’re going to need it,” Trump said about the trilateral agreement. “I think we’ll be just fine with China. China doesn’t want to do that. First of all, the United States is the strongest military power in the world by far. It’s not even close, not even close. We have the best equipment. We have the best of everything, and nobody’s going to mess with that. And I don’t see that at all with President Xi.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. The Associated Press contributed to this report.