Australia will be only one of three nations to have Tomahawks along with the US and Britain, defence minister Richard Marles said.

“We are investing in the capabilities our Defence Force needs to hold our adversaries at risk further from our shores and keep Australians safe in the complex and uncertain world in which we live today,” Marles said in a statement.

The US state department in March approved the sale of the Tomahawks, which have a range of 1,500km, but did not indicate at the time that a contract had been signed or talks had concluded.

The ship-launched version of the missiles, manufactured by RTX Corp, will be deployed on the Royal Australian Navy’s Hobart-class destroyers, he said.

Australia says it needs to upgrade its defence forces as China is undertaking the biggest military build-up since the end of World War Two.

Earlier this year it agreed to work with the US and Britain to develop a nuclear-powered submarine fleet.

In addition to the Tomahawks, Australia would spend about A$431 million to purchase more than 60 advanced anti-radiation guided missiles from the US, the defence minister said.

Long-range anti-tank guided missiles would also be bought for Australian Army’s Boxer combat reconnaissance vehicles in a contract worth more than A$50 million.

The Tomahawk announcement came days after the US approved a possible sale to Australia of M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (Himars) for US$975 million.