米英豪、極超音速兵器で協力　中ロに対抗か

【ＡＦＰ＝時事】米国と英国、オーストラリアの３か国は５日、安全保障枠組み「ＡＵＫＵＳ（オーカス）」の新たな取り組みとして、極超音速兵器やその迎撃技術での協力を表明した。最新鋭の同兵器をめぐっては、ロシアや中国が開発を急速に進めている。（資料写真）
　３か国は先に、中国の軍備拡張に対抗するため、ＡＵＫＵＳの枠組みを通じて豪州に原子力潜水艦を配備することを発表している。
　ジョー・バイデン米大統領、ボリス・ジョンソン英首相、スコット・モリソン豪首相は声明で、「極超音速兵器およびその迎撃技術、電子戦力面での３か国の新たな協力」を表明した。
　極超音速ミサイルは、一定の高度を保って音速の５倍以上で飛行することができ、通常のミサイルに比べて迎撃が特に難しい。
　米議会調査局によると、極超音速技術面での最先進国はロシアで、中国も開発に注力している。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2022/04/07-10:15）

The United States, Britain and Australia said Tuesday they would begin collaborating on hypersonic missile strike and defence capacity, as rivals Russia and China advance rapidly in the cutting-edge technology.
The trio said they would work on hypersonics in an expansion of their recent AUKUS defence alliance, which is to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines to counter China's growing military clout.
They pledged new trilateral cooperation on hypersonics and counter-hypersonics, and electronic warfare capabilities in a statement by US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
Hypersonic missiles can travel more than five times the speed of sound and manoeuvre in mid-flight, making them much harder to track and intercept than traditional projectiles.
They may carry conventional or nuclear warheads.
Hypersonics and related technologies were now very much a part of what the AUKUS partnership is striving to deliver, Australia's Morrison told reporters on Wednesday.
But there were few details about what the leaders' hypersonic plan entailed.
Marcus Hellyer, defence analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said it was hard to judge what is actually new in the statement.
Australia and the United States were already working together on hypersonics, he said, although the new commitment may open up new areas of cooperation with Britain.
Australia announced in December 2020 it would work with the United States on developing hypersonic weapons in a so-called SCIFIRE programme.
And Canberra committed in its 2020 defence strategy programme to invest Aus$6.2 billion-9.3 billion (US$4.7 billion-7.0 billion) in high-speed, long-range strike and missile defence, including hypersonics.
- Russia ahead -
On the same day as the latest AUKUS announcement, the US military said it had recently completed a free-flight test of an aircraft-launched hypersonic missile that maintained a speed of more than Mach 5.
But rival powers are making rapid advances.
Russia is the most advanced nation in hypersonics while China is also aggressively developing the technology, according to the US Congressional Research Service.
Last month, Moscow claimed it had twice fired its newest Kinzhal hypersonic missiles to hit targets in Ukraine.
Russia has also claimed a series of successful tests including firing a Zircon hypersonic missile from a submerged submarine.
China tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile that circled the Earth last year, according to media reports confirmed by the Pentagon's top general. China said it was a routine spacecraft test.
North Korea claimed to have carried out two hypersonic missile tests in January.
The United States, Britain and Australia launched AUKUS last September, vowing to provide Australia with the technology to build a nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarine fleet, giving it greater stealth and reach in the Pacific region.
As a result, Canberra scrapped a multibillion-dollar submarine deal with France, infuriating Paris.
The three leaders said Tuesday they were pleased with progress on the Australian submarine programme.