By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s government on Friday welcomed signs that a U.S. defense spending bill which would authorise the sale of nuclear submarines to Australia is set to pass Congress after a compromise between Republicans and Democrats. The sale is part of AUKUS – a pact with the United States and Britain to develop nuclear-powered submarines and other high technology weapons and Australia’s most expensive defence project with a $244 billion price tag over three decades. The Australian government is “heartened and hopeful,” Defence Minister Richard Marles told reporte…