Joel Fitzgibbon recalls being shocked when he became defence minister in 2007 to discover that after years fighting in Afghanistan Australia did not have access to NATO’s planning documents for military operations there. In a …
Maritime autonomous vehicles (MAVs) have fast become an essential component of the modern maritime security scene and may operate underwater, on the surface, or in the air—though the latter are commonly referred to as drones. …
The 2023 defence strategic review (DSR) identifies itself as ‘the most substantial and ambitious approach to Defence reform recommended to any Australian government since the Second World War’. It maps out a pivot for the …
When the incoming Albanese government tasked former defence minister Stephen Smith and former chief of the Australian Defence Force Angus Houston with writing the defence strategic review, they spelled out the clear need for prioritisation …
The defence strategic review gives the clearest description yet of the perilous strategic circumstances in which we are living. It is not based on distant future scenarios but on the reality of the threats from …
Public discussion of the defence strategic review (DSR) has focused on the announced changes to major capability programs. On that score, the statement by Defence Minister Richard Marles that the DSR is ‘the most ambitious …
The government has accepted sweeping recommendations in a review of Australia’s strategic position and the military capabilities it needs to defend itself, with the main focus on building deterrence through the ability to strike a …
In opting to acquire nuclear-powered submarines as a part of the AUKUS deal with the United States and the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has committed Australia to a price tag of about $368 …
Japan can quickly and inexpensively increase its force of diesel-electric combat submarines from 22 to at least 28, if it stops prematurely retiring them. That would provide more of the one category of warship that …
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has set out her government’s plan to avert war in the region and maintain peace using all the elements of Australia’s national power including diplomacy and development assistance, underwritten by strong …
The president of Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen, after visiting Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies in Latin America, made a ‘stopover’ last week in California, where she met with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Beijing responded with …
The carefully staged AUKUS plan to provide Australia with nuclear-powered submarines (SSNs) will build increased deterrence as each phase is completed, says former Royal Australian Navy chief Tim Barrett. ‘I think the way it’s been …