Congressman Robert Aderholt, AL-04, last Friday hosted the second annual AUKUS defense industry event at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, bringing together defense and national security leaders from Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States to discuss advanced defense capabilities, strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific and the role Alabama plays in the future of allied security cooperation. Congressman Dale Strong, AL-05, also participated in the event, with the Fifth Congressional District being the epicenter of the defense and aerospace sector in North Alabama.
The forum builds on the Congressman’s inaugural AUKUS gathering held in 2024 and continues a first-of-its-kind opportunity to connect experts and innovators responsible for one of the most ambitious defense cooperation initiatives of this generation, according to Aderholt’s press release.
“Huntsville is the Rocket City — the town that helped win the space race — and today, the men and women shaping the future of defense cooperation and deterrence are gathered right here in Alabama,” Congressman Aderholt said. “AUKUS is about maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific, but at its core it reflects something even deeper: trust among allies. That trust must now be translated into real capabilities, delivered with urgency.”
Congressman Strong emphasized North Alabama’s strategic importance to allied defense innovation.
“There are few better places to bring the stated goals of AUKUS Pillar Two to life than North Alabama and Redstone Arsenal,” Strong said. “Our region has long been a key national security player, and this trilateral agreement is no different. This second annual forum is just another example of how Alabama continues to lead the way in increasing defense cooperation, innovation, and information sharing between the United States and our allies.”
Congressman Aderholt emphasized that the advanced capabilities central to AUKUS align directly with Alabama’s strengths and the work already being done across the state’s defense and technology sectors, including cyber capabilities, artificial intelligence and autonomy, quantum technologies, undersea capabilities, hypersonic and counter-hypersonic development, electronic warfare, innovation and information sharing and deep space radar.
During remarks, the Congressman also underscored the need for the United States and its allies to modernize the way defense capabilities are developed and fielded, warning that outdated processes and bureaucracy risk slowing progress at a time when speed and innovation are essential.
“The tools that won the 20th century could cost us victory in the 21st if we fail to adapt,” Aderholt said. “Bureaucracy is a luxury we can no longer afford. AUKUS can help drive a new way of doing business — moving faster, thinking bigger, and delivering results with the urgency this moment demands.”
As a member of the House Appropriations Committee and the Defense Subcommittee on Appropriations, Congressman Aderholt highlighted Congress’s responsibility to ensure the Department of Defense has the flexibility needed to plan, fund and field joint capabilities in a timely and innovative manner, while maintaining accountability.
The Congressman also introduced Alabama native Major General Terry Grisham, who has been named to lead the transition of the United States Space Command from Colorado Springs to Huntsville. Major General Grisham will oversee the relocation of U.S. Space Command from its temporary headquarters in Colorado Springs to its permanent home in Alabama.
“Alabama has long been at the forefront of America’s defense and space leadership,” Aderholt said. “With Major General Grisham’s leadership, our state will continue to play a critical role in the next chapter of national security and space operations.”
The event reaffirmed Huntsville’s role as a national hub for defense innovation and underscored Alabama’s growing leadership in emerging technologies vital to U.S. and allied deterrence in the Indo-Pacific and beyond, Aderholt’s release stated.
