Published on 30/05/2026 - 16:06 GMT+2

Defence ministers from the UK, Australia and the US on Saturday announced a joint partnership to develop and deploy "cutting-edge" underwater drone technologies as part of a push to boost maritime security.

The announcement, which came during a security conference in Singapore, is part of a trilateral military alliance between the nations known as Aukus. The alliance began in 2021 and is intended to offer deeper integration of defence-related technology and science as well as increased information sharing.

"This is what modern defence looks like," UK defence secretary John Healey said. "We are announcing ground-breaking underwater capabilities that will keep Britain safe, backing British businesses that are driving growth, and standing shoulder to shoulder with our closest allies".

The new technology is expected to be ready by 2027 and is designed to help defend critical subsea cables and pipelines.

The UK and Europe are connected by a series of vital underwater cables and pipelines, providing the UK with gas and electricity as well as internet access. Damage to these links has the potential to cause disruption to global communications as well as energy transmission.

Such cables have been increasingly under threat from vessels dragging anchors over the seabed, with both Russian and Chinese boats suspected of having deliberately taken such action.

In 2025, the UK announced the Atlantic Bastion programme, a system of autonomous vessels and artificial intelligence working with warships and aircraft to protect undersea cables and pipelines.

The Ministry of Defence said at the time that the programme was a "direct response to a resurgence in Russian submarine and underwater activity".

Unmanned underwater vehicles are also key weapons in Ukraine's arsenal as it continues to battle Russian President Vladimir Putin's forces.

Ukrainian troops have notched up some notable strikes using naval drones, with the technology helping Kyiv practically wipe out Russia's Black Sea Fleet earlier in the war, which began after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.