Australia is set to buy 220 Tomahawk cruise missiles after the US State Department approves the sale

The US State Department has approved the potential sale of Tomahawk cruise missiles to Australia in a deal worth up to $1.3 billion.

The Pentagon has approved the sale of 220 of the missiles in a multibillion-dollar deal that will also include technical support.

The sale of the missiles follows the announcement that Australia is acquiring multiple nuclear submarines under the US-UK alliance at a cost of up to $368 billion.

The sale has been approved by the US State Department but must still be approved by Congress before it can be finalized.

The package would contain up to 220 Tomahawk cruise missiles and technical support

Defense Minister Richard Marles confirmed that Australia wanted to increase its missile capability.

“It’s a really important part of what we need to do with our posture, which is to have a greater ability to project,” Marles told the Today Show.

“Obviously that’s the core of what we do with submarines, but making sure we have extended range missiles is a very important capability for the country.

“It allows us to reach beyond our coasts and that’s ultimately how we can keep Australia safe.”

Defense Minister Pat Conroy said Australia could get the missiles before the new fleet of nuclear-powered submarines arrives under the AUKUS deal.

“This is how we promote peace and stability by questioning my potential adversary,” he told ABC News.

“That’s why the Tomahawks are important and the nuclear-powered submarines are vital.”

He said the missiles could be fired from US Virginia-class submarines.

“We certainly want the best possible capability for the Australian Defense Force, including the ability to hit opponents as far from the Australian mainland as possible,” he said.

“The cruise missiles are a crucial part of that, as are the submarines that launch them.”

The announcement of the missiles follows criticism from former Labor Prime Minister Paul Keating of the submarine deal.

Despite the criticism, opposition leader Peter Dutton said the coalition would support the security partnership.

“We’ve all been at the end of Paul Keating sprays, but it was a special effort this week,” he said.

It is in the interest of our country. That is why we negotiated AUKUS and we will do everything we can to help the government get through the family feud.”

Mr Marles said the attacks on the AUKUS deal were not surprising, but the submarine deal was the right thing to do.

“We’ll make sure we handle all of that, but at the end of the day, we’re focused on speaking to the Australian people as we are to our own party room,” he said.

More to come