Australia has become the third nation to equip itself with Tomahawk missiles.

The Royal Australian Navy successfully launched an American Tomahawk missile, becoming the third country in the world to adopt them.

This was reported by the Australian Department of Defense.

The Australian agency noted that the launches took place off the west coast of the United States.

“Australia is one of three countries, alongside the USA and the UK, that have acquired and are now using these missiles,” the defense ministry emphasized.

The release states that the Australian government will allocate $1.3 billion for the acquisition of Tomahawk missiles. Overall, Canberra plans to purchase more than 200 of these missiles, which will be deployed on Hobart-class destroyers and future naval platforms, including Virginia-class submarines.

The Australian Department of Defense showcased a video of the test launches of Tomahawk and other missiles: Naval Strike Missile and Standard Missile 6, which were tested earlier.

“The acquisition of Tomahawk, as well as Naval Strike Missile and Standard Missile 6, marks a turning point for the Australian Defense Forces and occurs several years ahead of schedule,” explained Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Richard Marles.

Recall that the Tomahawk missile has a range of 1500 km, which is significantly greater than the range of ATACMS that Ukraine is receiving.

Background. Earlier, Mind reported that in a secret section of the Victory Plan, President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed a “non-nuclear deterrence package,” which includes the provision of Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.