Joe Courtney

09/15/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/15/2024 11:04

AUKUS Anniversary: Rep. Joe Courtney Joins ABC Australia

NORWICH, CT - Rep.Joe Courtney (D-CT), Co-Chair of the AUKUS Working Group, joined ABC Australia's Michael Rowland ahead of today's third anniversary of the AUKUS security agreement.

Three years later, Courtney says AUKUS progress has completely "surpassed" expectations.

"For the U.S. Congress, which has been stuck in tremendous gridlock, to see an undertaking like this succeed so quickly and on such a strong bipartisan basis, … and the enthusiasm with which our two Navies are working to make it a reality, I think really shows that people are really serious about [AUKUS]," Courtney told Rowland.

Here are a few highlights:

  1. Australian submariners training in the U.S.:Thanks to Courtney's legislation, the first ever Royal Australian Navy personnel completed nuclear power school in South Carolina and sub school in Groton, Connecticut. To date, six RAN officers and nine enlisted RAN sailors have graduated from the U.S. Navy's Submarine School. Another 100 Australian sailors will be rotating through Groton to receive training over the next year.
  2. First-ever joint maintenance operation:Because of authorization Courtney included in the 2024 annual dense bill, last month marked the first time U.S. Navy and Royal Australian Navy personnel conducted a joint maintenance operation on an attack submarine and the first time maintenance was conducted in Australia.
  3. Australians working at a U.S. Shipyard:Thanks to the 2024 national defense bill Courtney championed, 20 Australian industry personnel from the Australian Submarine Corporation (ASC) completed a successful three-month placement at Pearl Harbor Naval shipyard in Hawaii.
  4. Easing Trade and Export Restrictions:For the second time in history,the Department of Defense, as directed by 2024 annual defense bill, added Australia and the United Kingdom under the umbrella of the Defense Production Act to accelerate defense innovate and access to critical minerals between the three allies. And just recently, the U.S. State Department eased export controls with Australia and the U.K. to ease defense trade.

To read more about the historic AUKUS authorities Courtney championed in the FY24 National Defense Authorization Act, click here.

To read more about Rep. Joe Courtney's leadership on AUKUS, click here.