The UK has declared its ties to Australia are "absolute", vowing it will deliver on its defence commitments as doubt grows over the reliability of the US.
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See subscription optionsA 50-year treaty to underpin the AUKUS security pact will be signed in Geelong on Saturday following talks hosted by Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles for their UK counterparts in Sydney.
The AUKUS security partnership involves the US, UK and Australia, but the fresh treaty is only between London and Canberra.
The treaty shows the UK and Australia are strengthening ties in the face of the Pentagon's yet-to-be-completed AUKUS review.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy described talks with the Albanese government as "focused and constructive".
"It's clear that the UK, Australia relationship is an anchor in what is a very volatile world, providing stability in troubled waters and a relationship that holds steady whichever way the geopolitical winds are blowing," he said.
Defence Secretary John Healey said the UK's commitment to Australia was "absolute".
Mr Healey said his government had taken steps to ensure capacity for the planned SSN-AUKUS class submarines.
"We have made a commitment ... in making sure that we have the productive capacity, we have the technology and the designs to be able to deliver our commitments to the SSN-AUKUS and we will," he said.
The new boats will be built in Adelaide and delivered in the 2040s.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said the inking of the deal would underpin the development of AUKUS.
The bilateral treaty will facilitate greater economic co-operation between the two nations by improving both countries' industrial capacity.
As part of the existing defence agreement, Australia will pay $5 billion to support British industry to design and produce nuclear reactors to power the future AUKUS-class submarines.
Australia is set to be sold least three Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from the US in the early 2030s under the $368 billion AUKUS submarine program.
But the planned sale of US-built boats has been up in the air since the Trump administration launched a review of the deal to examine whether it aligns with his "America first" agenda.
Defence analysts believe a likely outcome of the US review will be a request for more money from Australia to support its submarine industrial base.
The UK's Carrier Strike Group, led by the Royal Navy flagship HMS Prince of Wales, arrived in Darwin on Wednesday as Australia hosts Exercise Talisman Sabre.
It's the first UK carrier strike group to visit Australia since 1997.
The international task group includes five core ships, 24 jets and 17 helicopters, centred on the flagship aircraft carrier.
Mr Lammy said the deployment of British troops to the region was a signal of its determination to keep the Indo-Pacific free and open.
Mr Marles and Senator Wong will join their UK counterparts in Darwin on Sunday to observe the strike group in action.
Australian Associated Press
