South Korea has held talks about joining a landmark defense technology pact between Australia, the United States and Britain.

South Korea is discussing participation in the AUKUS defense pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States, Defence Minister Shin Won-sik said on Wednesday.

Shin was speaking at a press conference following a meeting of Australian and South Korean defense and foreign ministers in Melbourne.

“During today’s meeting we also discussed the possibility of partnering with AUKUS Pillar 2,” Shin said, referring to a deal focused on developing hypersonic weapons, drones and other advanced technologies.

The AUKUS deal

Established in  2021, AUKUS is a two-stage security pact to push back against China’s growing influence in the Asia Pacific region.

Pillar 1 is focused on providing Australia with a fleet of nuclear-powered attack submarines. South Korea is not expected to be part of that project.

Pillar 2 aims to develop advanced warfighting capabilities such as artificial intelligence, undersea drones and hypersonic missiles.

“We support AUKUS Pillar 2 activities and we do welcome that members are considering Korea as an AUKUS Pillar 2 partner,” Shin said.

Source: Dw