South Korea is considering sharing advanced military technology with the US, the UK and Australia through the so-called AUKUS partnership, South Korean Minister of National Defense Shin Won-sik said yesterday.
The possibility was discussed during two days of meetings between South Korea and Australia’s defense and foreign ministers that ended in Melbourne yesterday, Shin said.
The US and the UK in 2021 agreed to provide Australia with a fleet of submarines powered by US nuclear technology under the AUKUS agreement to counter a growing military presence from China. AUKUS is an acronym for Australia, the UK and the US.
Photo: AFP
The countries could become involved in cooperation on a wider range of security technologies including artificial intelligence, electronic warfare and hypersonic systems through what is known as AUKUS Pillar II.
Shin welcomed South Korea’s invitation from the three AUKUS partners.
“We do welcome that AUKUS members are considering [South] Korea as an AUKUS Pillar II partner and Korea’s defense science and technology capabilities will contribute to the peace and stability of the development of AUKUS Pillar 2 and regional peace,” Shin said.
Japan is also moving toward formal talks to become part of AUKUS Pillar II’s technology development and sharing.
Australian Minister for Defense Richard Marles welcomed South Korean efforts to build on its relationship with Japan, which along with Australia, the US and India form a security dialogue known as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue.
“We see this is a very, very positive step forward in the strategic landscape of the region and represents a huge opportunity for Australia to engage with both [South] Korea and Japan,” Marles told reporters.
“[South] Korea and Australia are working together to uphold the rules-based order within our region and, in fact, within the world,” Marles added.
Super Typhoon Kong-rey is the largest cyclone to impact Taiwan in 27 years, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Kong-rey’s radius of maximum wind (RMW) — the distance between the center of a cyclone and its band of strongest winds — has expanded to 320km, CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張竣堯) said. The last time a typhoon of comparable strength with an RMW larger than 300km made landfall in Taiwan was Typhoon Herb in 1996, he said. Herb made landfall between Keelung and Suao (蘇澳) in Yilan County with an RMW of 350km, Chang said. The weather station in Alishan (阿里山) recorded 1.09m of
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