Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles speaks during a joint press conference with the US Defense Secretary and the British Defense Secretary during the AUKUS Defense Ministerial Meeting in Mountain View, California, on Dec 1, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)

CANBERRA - The Australian government has committed to more than doubling the size of the nation's naval warships.

Richard Marles, minister for defense and deputy prime minister, and Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy on Tuesday announced the major overhaul.

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Under the plan, Australia's fleet of combat-ready warships will be expanded from the current 11 to 26.

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The government will spend an additional 11.1 billion Australian dollars ($7.2 billion) over the next decade to accelerate the delivery of the future fleet, which Marles and Conroy said will be Australia's largest since the end of World War II.

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The plan in total will boost the country's defense spend in the early 2030s to 2.4 percent of GDP, compared to the 2.1 percent it was planned to be when the government came to office, said reports.