The government’s new multi-billion-dollar funding commitment, to be announced on Sunday, will support the development of a major defence precinct in Henderson, south of Perth.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The funding will go towards construction of surface vessels for the Australian Defence Force, starting with the army’s new landing craft.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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The investment will expand a defence precinct at the Henderson shipyard near Perth. (Supplied: Australian Defence Department)<\/p>\n
It will also be used to build docking stations for nuclear-powered submarines, with Australia expecting to receive its first Virginia-class submarine in the 2030s under the AUKUS agreement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The money will also be spent building maintenance facilities for surface combatant vessels and could help build Australia’s future general purpose frigates.<\/p>\n
Inside the plan to station US subs near Perth<\/a><\/p>\n The head of Australia’s submarine agency says planning is so far advanced to settle the American soldiers that quarantine arrangements for their pets are underway.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is set to announce the investment in Perth alongside his deputy and Defence Minister Richard Marles, Defence Personnel Minister Matt Keogh and Western Australia’s Premier Roger Cook.<\/p>\n In a statement, Mr Albanese described the investment as “another way we are delivering record defence funding to bolster Australia’s capabilities”.<\/p>\n The government estimates the defence precinct in Henderson will cost about $25 billion over a decade.<\/p>\n An $8 billion operation<\/a> is already underway south of Perth, where five nuclear-powered submarines and more than 1,000 American personnel will soon be based as part of Submarine Rotational Force-West.\u00a0<\/p>\n Perth will soon become home for hundreds of American service personnel.\u00a0 (Supplied: Defence)<\/p>\n The operation is the first sign of the AUKUS agreement in action, with up to four US Virginia-class submarines and one UK Astute-class submarine rotating through HMAS Stirling for maintenance and repairs from 2027.\u00a0<\/p>\n The works are expected to entrench US military personnel and defence hardware into WA in a way that will be challenging to undo if the Trump administration loses interest in the security pact.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Pentagon’s review of AUKUS is casting doubt over the White House’s support for the agreement.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mr Marles made a hastily arranged trip to Washington DC last month, where he met with senior Trump administration officials including US Vice-President JD Vance.\u00a0<\/p>\n Richard Marles posted a photo of his encounter with Defence Secretary and Vice-President JD Vance to social media. (Supplied)<\/p>\n In a bizarre misstep, the Pentagon initially denied Mr Marles<\/a> had a meeting with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth \u2014 instead characterising it as a “happenstance encounter” \u2014 before later walking back that statement. \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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