USS Minnesota (SSN 783) recently arrived at HMAS Stirling, a Royal Australian Navy base, one of two planned visits to support the trilateral security agreement known as AUKUS, a partnership of Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

SSN 783, which Newport News Shipbuilding delivered to the U.S. Navy in 2013, is conducting at-sea operations as part of the submarine command course, a training program for naval officers preparing to take command of a submarine.

At HMAS Stirling, the U.S. Navy will have the opportunity to share and compare procedures, such as weapons handling, with their Australian counterparts, according to a news release from AUKUS Integration and Acquisition.

“U.S. Navy ships have been visiting Australia for long before I was even in the Navy,” said Cmdr. Jeffrey “J.” Cornielle, the submarine’s commanding officer. He called the visit “another step that continues progress towards establishing the Royal Australian Navy’s sovereign, conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine force.”