Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register LONDON, April 5 (Reuters) – Britain, the United States and Australia agreed on Tuesday to work together on supersonic weapons and electronic warfare capabilities, the office of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday, following a call from new leaders. . The new AUKUS alliance, launched last September, has pushed Australia to cancel a contract for a conventional French submarine in favor of a US-British nuclear-powered submarine program, damaging relations with French President Maelroon Eman. read more In a joint statement, AUKUS leaders Johnson, US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said they were pleased with the progress of the conventional armored nuclear submarine program for Australia and that the allies would work together in other areas as well. . Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register “We also pledged today to launch a new tripartite cooperation on ultrasound and anti-ultrasound, as well as cyber warfare capabilities,” the statement said. The United States and Australia already have a supersonic weapons program called SCIFiRE, an acronym for Southern Cross Integrated Flight Research Experiment. British officials have said that although Britain will not participate in the program at this time, the three countries will work together on research and development in the region to expand their options. The Biden government is investing in research and development of supersonic missiles, which travel at five times the speed of sound, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February has heightened European security concerns. read more “In light of the unprovoked, unjustified and illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine, we reaffirmed our unwavering commitment to an international system that respects human rights, the rule of law and the peaceful settlement of disputes without coercion,” the two leaders said. their commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific”. Russia says it launched a “special military operation” in Ukraine on February 24 to demilitarize its neighbor. The Kremlin’s position is rejected by Ukraine and the West as a pretext for an unprovoked invasion. Asked about the British-US-Australian cooperation agreement on supersonic weapons, China’s ambassador to the UN, Zhang Joon, warned on Tuesday of measures that could spark a crisis such as the conflict in Ukraine and elsewhere. . “Anyone who does not want to see the Ukrainian crisis should refrain from doing things that could lead other parts of the world to a crisis like this,” Zhang told reporters. “As the Chinese proverb says: If you do not like it, do not impose it on others.” Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Alistair Smout, Additional Report by Michelle Nichols at the United Nations. curated by Ed Osmond and Jonathan Oatis Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
