Washington, December 1 (EFE).- Defense officials from the United States, Britain and Australia announced this Friday in California new steps to implement the AUKUS tripartite security agreement, among them the development of artificial intelligence and quantum navigation technologies.

“Time and time again, AUKUS shows that we are stronger together,” said US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin after meeting with his counterparts to evaluate the pact’s implementation process, which includes the sale of several nuclear-powered submarines to Australia so far. the next few years.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said progress had been made in this regard, such as the graduation of six Australian officers from the US Navy-run Nuclear Energy School.

However, the meeting mainly aims to develop what is known as the “second pillar” of the AUKUS agreement, which refers to cooperation in “advanced military capabilities”: quantum navigation, space radar or electronic warfare, among others.

“If we look back at the importance of today’s meeting, we will see it as a critical moment, a turning point in the progress of the second pillar,” said Marles.

In this regard, the allied countries announced the development of a series of experimental exercises with autonomous weapons systems in the waters of the Indo-Pacific, which will begin next year, or the application of artificial intelligence algorithms to improve data processing from their sonobuoys. .

They also voted to promote radar systems to identify threats in space, whose bases would be distributed among the three countries, and the development of quantum technology to improve submarine navigation.

Those responsible also announced the creation of a series of innovation challenges, to be held in early 2024, to spur the development of new military technologies in the field of electronic warfare.

The AUKUS pact was announced in 2021 to try to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific, and has been heavily criticized by Beijing, which accused the three countries of fueling an arms race in the region.

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