U.S., U.K. and Australia Plan to Develop Hypersonic Weapons
- Move follows use of the technology by Russia in Ukraine war
- U.K. official says AUKUS alliance wants weapons as deterrent
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The U.K., U.S. and Australia said they are working on developing hypersonic weapons -- military technology already deployed by Russia in Ukraine -- as part of their new trilateral security pact called AUKUS.
Their plan is to “accelerate development of advanced hypersonic and counter-hypersonic capabilities,” according to a joint statement. The alliance wants to counter the threat of such weapons, which can evade traditional missile defense systems and travel five times faster than the speed of sound, and develop its own as a deterrent, a U.K. official said on condition of anonymity.