In early January 2015, the
that the Ministry of Defense (MOD) had proposed joint development and production of the submarine with Australia. Instead of exporting a completed
Soryu-class submarine, the proposal suggested joint development of new technology for material that absorbs sound waves and special steel that would be used to manufacture the hull.
Japan would be in charge of
of the hull and assembling the submarines, while Australia would be in charge of producing some of the parts as well as the final building and maintenance. A Japanese
that assembling the submarines in Australia would lead to higher costs and might affect the quality and safety of the product.
point to Japanese caution about completely handing over its submarine technology to Australia. Submarines
as the ‘most sensitive of all sensitive information’. For this reason the Japanese military, and especially the Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) whose cooperation will be essential if the deal goes ahead, has major reservations about the deal. MSDF officers ‘don’t tell colleagues, let alone family members, where a submarine is headed after it leaves port’. Japan and the US, which share some information gathered by submarines, do not share the location or ability of each submarine.
But the Abe government
sharing Japan’s submarine technology with Australia would lead to a strengthening of the production capacity of Japan’s domestic enterprises. The fact that Prime Minister Abe decided to examine the provision of
Soryu-class submarine technology to Australia despite opposition from the MOD was regarded as proof that he considers Australia to be a ‘quasi-ally’.
