Christopher Stagg commented on the new enhanced trilateral security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This partnership will allow Australia to acquire a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines for deployment in the regions' seas. President Biden said that the governments would launch an 18-month consultation period to determine every element of this program so as to ensure full compliance with each of the nation's commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. "If fully realized, the agreement should create greater interoperability between the United States and Australia, permit Australia to take a greater attack role in naval operations, and offset any potential gaps in needed and comparable U.S. Navy submarines that are deployed to the Seventh Fleet," Stagg said.