On April 5, 2022, the leaders of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States issued a fact sheet detailing progress on AUKUS implementation. The document formally disclosed the AUKUS Quantum Arrangement (AQuA), a trilateral initiative to coordinate research, development, testing, and evaluation of quantum technologies for defense applications.
According to the White House fact sheet, AQuA would “accelerate investments to deliver generation-after-next quantum capabilities” with an initial focus on quantum technologies for positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT). The three partners committed to integrating emerging quantum technologies in trials and experimentation over the following three years.
Beyond AQuA, the April 2022 update expanded Pillar II from four to eight working groups, adding hypersonic and counter-hypersonic capabilities, electronic warfare, innovation, and information sharing. Seventeen trilateral working groups had been established across both pillars, each having met multiple times since the September 2021 announcement.