Australia races to reform defence amid shift of power in region from US to China

Name: Australia unveils biggest defence reform in decades, prioritising long-range missiles
Uploaded: 2023-04-24T10:34:33.000Z
Duration: 1 min 57 s
Description: Australia unveils biggest defence reform in decades, prioritising long-range missiles

The Albanese government will improve the defence force’s ability to carry out long-range strikes, in addition to investing in nuclear-powered submarines as part of the Aukus deal

The defence recommendations come as part of a major strategic review, which also highlight China’s growing military strength driving a power shift in the region

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chief of the Australian Defence Force Angus Campbell. Criticised by the opposition party for being light on defence spending previously, the Labor government has agreed to many of the review’s recommendations and will implement major changes. Photo: via Reuters

Su-Lin Tanin Singapore

Published: 6:34pm, 24 Apr 2023Updated: 10:28pm, 24 Apr 2023

Australia will overhaul its defence force as changes in power competition in the Indo-Pacific region and the speed of military threats mean its current capabilities are no longer “fit for purpose”, the government has said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s administration on Monday released a public version of a major strategic review of Australia’s defence capabilities – the first in about 37 years. It commissioned the report soon after Albanese took office in May 2022.

Criticised by the opposition party for being light on defence spending previously, the Labor government has agreed to many of the review’s recommendations and will implement major changes, such as improving the defence force’s ability to carry out long-range strikes and investing in nuclear-powered submarines, as part of the Aukus security tie-up announced earlier this year.

(From left) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in San Diego, US, on March 13, 2023, as part of Aukus, a trilateral security pact between Australia, the UK, and the US. Photo: via AP

“The review is clear that we cannot waste any more time when it comes to acquiring critical defence capabilities,” Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles said on Monday, the eve of Australia’s Anzac Day war commemorations. “The Albanese government is determined to reform defence and its capability acquisition processes to ensure our defence forces have the capabilities they need and sooner.”

Despite years of being insulated from direct threats from other conflicts in the region, Australia now faces a need to renew its defence capabilities.

The Australian army, for example, will be improved so it can conduct “littoral manoeuvre operations by sea, land and air from Australia, with enhanced long-range fires”.

The air force must be able to maintain “a network of northern airbases with appropriate hardening and dispersal” and the navy’s capability will be transformed by nuclear-powered submarines which have been ordered via Aukus.

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Australia unveils biggest defence reform in decades, prioritising long-range missiles