Australia to focus on ties with India, counter China in new defence review

Canberra: Australia has decided to focus on stronger ties with India and Japan while developing its defence capabilities and self-sufficiency even as it aims to counter an increasingly aggressive China in the Indo-Pacific region.

This has been revealed in Australia’s Defence Strategic Review (DSR), which proposes the country’s biggest defence rejig since World War II. The public version of the document was released by Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday.

According to the DSR, Australia intends to lay greater priority on improving its long-range precision strike capability and boost domestic defence production with a focus on guided weapons.

The DSR pinpoints China as the principal threat facing Australia and expressed concerns over the military build-up by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) terming it “the largest and most ambitious of any country since the end of the (World War II)”.

“We commissioned the Defence Strategic Review to make sure Australia is more secure. Today, we’ve released our response to the review. It shows how determined we are to keep Australians safe. Because national security is every government’s most solemn responsibility,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement on Twitter.

“We support the strategic direction and key findings set out in the Review, which will strengthen our national security and ensure our readiness for future challenges. The Government will continue to invest in our capabilities and invest in our relationships to help build a more secure Australia and a more stable and prosperous region,” he added.

The DSR, which has been announced within the first 100 days of the current administration, sets the stage for a bold but essential change of Australia’s defence posture and organisation.

According to the analysis, the US is no longer the “unipolar leader of the Indo-Pacific,” China and the US are fierce competitors, and this competition “has potential for conflict.”

The DSR urged the Australian government to acquire nuclear-powered submarines through the AUKUS alliance which includes Australia, UK and the United States (US) and improve the ability of the Australia Defence Force (ADF) to operate from its bases in the country’s northern areas.

It also called for an improvement in the growth and retention of a highly skilled defence workforce and lifting capacity to rapidly translate disruptive new technologies into ADF capability, in close partnership with Australian industry and deepening of diplomatic and defence partnerships with partner nations in the Indo-Pacific region.

“My government commissioned the Defence Strategic Review to assess whether Australia had the necessary defence capability, posture and preparedness to best defend Australia and its interests in the strategic environment we now face,” Albanese said.

The DSR called on the government of Australia to develop closer defence ties with the United States (US), including more bilateral military planning, joint patrols and hosting more rotations of the US military.

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