Effective beginning on the date that is one year after December 22, 2023, the President is authorized to transfer up to two Virginia Class submarines from the inventory of the Department of the Navy to the Government of Australia on a sale basis, and transfer not more than one additional Virginia Class submarine to the Government of Australia on a sale basis pursuant to section 21 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2761) during the 20-year period beginning on December 22, 2023, to implement the trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States (in this section referred to as the “AUKUS partnership”).
Any expense incurred by the United States in connection with a transfer of a vessel authorized under subsection (a) shall be charged to the Government of Australia notwithstanding section 2321j(e) of this title.
The requirement for the Chief of Naval Operations to make a certification under section 8678 of title 10 shall not apply to the transfer of a vessel authorized under subsection (a).
The President may not provide for the transfer of a vessel authorized under subsection (a) unless the United States and Australia have entered into a mutual defense agreement that meets the requirements of subparagraph (B) and such agreement is in effect.
Not later than 30 days after the receipt of funds as described in subparagraph (B), the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees and leadership a report on the matters described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A).
With respect to any special nuclear material for use in utilization facilities or any portion of a vessel transferred under the authority of subsection (a) constituting utilization facilities for military applications under section 2121 of title 42, the transfer of such material or such facilities shall only occur in accordance with such section 2121 of title 42.
The President may transfer or authorize the export of defense services (as such term is defined in section 47 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2794)) to the Government of Australia and the Government of the United Kingdom necessary or incidental to support the transfer and operation of vessels authorized under subsection (a).
The transfer or export of defense services under this subsection may be directly exported to private and public-sector personnel of Australia or to private and public-sector personnel of the United Kingdom to support the development of the Australian submarine industrial base necessary for submarine security activities between members of the AUKUS partnership, including in the case in which such private and public-sector personnel are not officers, employees, or agents of the Government of Australia or the Government of the United Kingdom.
Any person who receives any defense service transferred or exported under paragraph (1) may retransfer or reexport such service to other persons only in accordance with the requirements of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.).
Any defense service transferred or exported under paragraph (1) shall be subject to appropriate security controls to ensure that any sensitive information conveyed by such transfer or export is protected from disclosure to persons unauthorized by the United States to receive such information.
Not later than 30 days before the first transfer or export of a defense service under paragraph (1), and annually thereafter, the President shall certify to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives that the controls described in subparagraph (A) will protect the information described in such subparagraph for the defense services so transferred or exported.