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What is Aukus, the military pact announced by the US, the UK and Australia to deal with China

New alliance in the Indo-Pacific.

The United States, United Kingdom and Australia announced on Wednesday an ambitious security pact to share advanced defense technology, in an attempt to counter China's advances.

The strategic pact was baptized as Aukus (from the acronym in English for Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States) and aims to "defend the shared interests in the Indo-Pacific" of these powers.

Joe Biden appeared from Washington, flanked by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Scott Morrison, who connected by videoconference to make the deal official, shortly after a US official described it as "historic."

Although no leader explicitly mentioned China, the announcement is widely seen as an attempt to curb l will progress from Beijing in the area.

And it is that the announcement is produced after the controversial actions of the Chinese government in the seas of Asia Pacific - where it has built from tourist facilities or for military use on land in dispute with other nations, which it claims as its own-; its investments in South Pacific countries or the deterioration of the relationship between Beijing and Canberra.

What does the new covenant entail

One of the highlights of it is that it will allow Australia to build nuclear powered submarines for the first time.

"As a first initiative under Aukus, we are committed to ... supporting Australia in the procurement of nuclear powered submarines for the Royal Australian Navy," the announcement statement said.

President Biden delved into the reasons behind the pact in his appearance.

"It's about investing in our greatest strength, our alliances, and updating them to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow," he explained.

"We have to be able to address the current strategic environment of the region and its evolution, because the future of each of our nations and, indeed, of the world, depends on the Indo-Pacific being free and open," Biden defended in a veiled reference to Beijing, which in turn accuses the US of militarizing the area.

So far, the United States has only shared its technology to develop nuclear-powered submarines with a single country, the United Kingdom, in 1958, explained a senior US government official in a call with journalists to explain the details of the deal.

That makes it "historic", the source opined, the fact that both the US and UK have now decided to "add" Australia to that deal, with a commitment to help the Royal Australian Navy acquire nuclear submarines.

However, the three leaders emphasized that Australia will not have nuclear weapons , but that these submarines will be "conventionally armed", but "powered by nuclear reactors."

"It is a proven technology, and it is safe," the US president assured.

Morrison, for his part, assured that Canberra will continue to "comply with all the obligations of nuclear non-proliferation."

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