Washington will seek to bolster its shrinking weapons stockpiles by helping Australia develop a missile manufacturing and exporting industry, top officials said Saturday after high-level talks between the two countries.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles announced the project after meetings in Brisbane with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin.
“We hope to see manufacturing of missiles commenced in Australia in two years’ time,” Marles told reporters, hailing the initiative as a boost to his country’s defence and industrial base.
“We are really pleased with the steps that we are taking in respect of establishing a guided weapons and explosive ordnance enterprise in this country,” he added.
The project will see Australia develop guided multiple launch rocket systems, or GMLRS.
Austin said the plan would help the United States “sharpen our technological edge and strengthen our defence industrial base”.
Washington will now work to help Australia build a fledgling domestic missile industry almost from scratch, with an eye to securing a reliable pipeline for its own armed forces down the track.
The war in Ukraine has exposed weaknesses in many Western military supply chains and has steadily depleted stocks of missiles and other munitions.
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