The former defence minister and now-opposition leader Peter Dutton has revealed that the previous Australian government was close to approaching the United States to purchase two Virginia-class nuclear submarines as a stopgap measure before it could build its own vessels.
Dutton urged the current Defence Minister Richard Marles to stay the course on AUKUS and not look at acquiring another submarine class to fill any capability gaps due to time and money constraints.
In an op-ed for The Australian newspaper, Dutton said he believed it was possible to negotiate with the United States to buy two Virginia-class submarines out of Connecticut; this meant the government could cut short the waiting time for the AUKUS submarines, which were due by 2038….