Closer military cooperation and possible basing of British defence assets in Australia will be discussed when ministers from both nations hold long-awaited face-to-face talks in Sydney this week.
The British foreign and defence secretaries are due to arrive on Thursday ahead of their formal AUKMIN talks with their Australian counterparts on Friday.
This year's Australia–United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations is expected to be dominated by the recent AUKUS nuclear submarine deal, as well as growing concerns over China's power in the Indo-Pacific.
As members of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network, both nations will also discuss threats to cyber security and other critical technology.
In 2020, diplomatic tensions emerged between Australia and the UK following the British government's decision to allow Chinese telco Huawei into the country's 5G network, a move which was eventually overturned.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace are flying to Australia as the United Kingdom and other NATO allies grow increasingly alarmed at a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Friday's meeting in Sydney will be the first in-person AUKMIN meeting to take place since the pandemic began, as well as the first 2+2 ministerial meeting hosted in Australia since the emergence of COVID-19.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne said she and Defence Minister Peter Dutton were looking forward to the timely discussions.
"AUKMIN is a demonstration of the strong partnership between Australia and the United Kingdom, underpinned by a shared commitment to deliver on practical actions that reinforce the sovereignty, resilience and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific," she said.
In September, the United Kingdom joined the United States in forming the AUKUS partnership, which aims to begin delivering a nuclear-powered submarine fleet for Australia in the late 2030s.
British and American companies have already begun jostling for work on Australia's nuclear submarine fleet, which is expected to be far more expensive than the now dumped $90 billion French-designed program.
The ABC has been told that during the AUKMIN talks, the UK and Australia will also consider further areas of more immediate military cooperation, including the possible temporary basing of British nuclear submarines here.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison will host the visiting British ministers at Kirribilli House ahead of the formal discussions with their Australian counterparts on Friday.
