One year ago, Anthony Albanese, Rishi Sunak and Joe Biden gathered at Naval Base Point Loma in San Diego to share the ‘optimal pathway’ for Australia to acquire the nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS agreement. This critical step laid out the timeline, the type of submarines that would be acquired and the price tag of $268-$368b for AUKUS Pillar I. But we wanted to check in, one year after the optimal pathway was announced. How are we progressing? Was the pathway realistic? And what are the barriers would be most likely to derail this plan? United States Studies Centre (USSC) Director of Foreign Policy and Defence Prof. Peter Dean and Research Associate Alice Nason joined Director of Engagement and Impact Mari Koeck to discuss. Read more: AUKUS inflection point: Building the ecosystem for workforce development by Peter Dean, Alice Nason, Sophie Mayo and Samuel Garrett AUKUS has become a case study in generational politics by Peter Dean and Alice Nason Are Biden and Congress playing chicken with AUKUS? by Tom Corben and Alice Nason The university sector’s value proposition for AUKUS: Times Higher Education Summit outcomes report by Peter Dean, Sophie Mayo and Alex Favier The social licence for AUKUS has not yet been earned by Sophie Mayo, Peter Lee and Alice Nason   Subscribe to the USSC Briefing Room on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.   Produced by: Elliott Brennan