The United States, Britain and Australia are considering cooperation with Japan on advanced capability projects of their trilateral AUKUS security pact, their defense chiefs said in a joint statement Monday.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his British and Australian counterparts, Grant Shapps and Richard Marles, issued the statement, noting their consideration of cooperation with Japan in AUKUS Pillar II projects.

Launched in September 2021 in an apparent move to counter China's regional influence, AUKUS consists of two key pillars. Pillar I is to support Australia in acquiring conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines, while Pillar II is for cooperation on high-tech areas, including quantum computing, artificial intelligence and hypersonics.

"Recognizing Japan's strengths and its close bilateral defense partnerships with all three countries, we are considering cooperation with Japan on AUKUS Pillar II advanced capability projects," the statement reads.

Austin, Shapps and Marles also highlighted their confidence that "engaging like-minded partners in the work of Pillar II will only strengthen" their pursuit of the shared objective to deliver advanced capabilities in support of regional stability.

Beijing has criticized AUKUS, arguing that "bloc confrontation and exclusive groupings" go against "the trend of the times" and worsen an arms race in the region. (Yonhap)