Australia beefing up military as it looks at China’s rise

The United States has long pushed its allies not to rely so much on America’s huge military forces and spend more on their own defence. Now, a conservative government in Australia wary of the military rise of China is planning an extensive arms build-up.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull this month committed to raising defence spending in five years to the equivalent of 2 per cent of the economy in perpetuity, a big increase that could influence the balance of power in the Pacific Ocean, experts say.

The decision is an example of how China’s economic and military rise is forcing allies that have long relied on US defence spending to guarantee their own security to re-evaluate.

Chinese nuclear and diesel submarines have been tracked in the Eastern Indian Ocean in the past two years, according to James Brown, a military analyst at the University of Sydney. The more frequent operation of Chinese warships in waters close to Australia is a factor behind the plan to increase defence spending, which had fallen to its lowest level relative to the economy since the eve of the second world war, he said.

“The Chinese navy is getting more sophisticated and operating further from home,” Brown said in an interview. “Everyone is looking to increase their influence in the region.”