Latest news with #AustralianDefenceForce
Sky News AU
4 hours ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
Former prime minister Tony Abbott accuses 'quasi-passivist' Albanese government of 'winding down' defence capability
Former prime minister Tony Abbott has accused Labor of taking a "quasi-passivist" approach to managing the Australian Defence Force as he called for an urgent spending increase. Australia's defence spend has been placed under scrutiny in recent days after United States Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told Defence Minister Richard Marles the nation needed to significantly boost investment. Despite the warning, the Albanese government has repeatedly insisted it will not alter its current plans for the ADF - which will not see Australia hit an outlay equivalent to 2.5 per cent of GDP until some time after 2033. Speaking to Sky News Australia, Mr Abbott claimed that decision came with serious risks, including potentially jeopardising one of the nation's most important international alliances. "We do have to spend a lot more on defence," he said. "We are sleepwalking through lotus land to disaster as things stand. We've got to appreciate that the world is getting much more dangerous. It's becoming more dangerous by the day. "So we in this country do need to wake up to ourselves and, frankly, if we want the American alliance to survive we have got to be a much better ally than we look right now." Under President Donald Trump the US has stepped up calls for allied nations to lift spending on defence as high as 3.5 per cent of GDP, hinting those who fail to increase their investment could risk losing some degree of military support or cooperation. Citing the rise of "communist China, fascist Russia and Islamist Iran", Mr Abbott argued Australia was increasingly at risk of exposure to conflict and needed to ensure it was able to be an effective partner to the US and other allies. The former prime minister claimed, however, that Labor instead appeared set on "winding down" the ADF's ability to engage with potential adversaries. Mr Abbott pointed to the government's response to a request for naval support in the Red Sea, with Mr Marles suggesting Australia was not in position to send a frigate to help defend shipping from Houthi militant attacks. "We said that we don't actually have a frigate to send because they're all needed close at home. I happened to be looking out my office window that day and there were five frigates and destroyers tied up at Garden Island," he said. "They weren't doing anything and frankly at least one of them should have been in the Red Sea." The former prime minister added the decision was emblematic of Labor's current approach to defence, before rounding off his criticism with a warning it was weakening the ADF. "I think there's a quasi-passivist element to this government and rather than say no to the Americans, they'd prefer to say: 'We can't'," he said. "That's what they're doing. They are steadily winding down the actual fighting capability of our armed forces."
The Hindu
5 hours ago
- Politics
- The Hindu
India-Australia defence ties beyond American shadows
Donald Trump's return to the White House has sent shockwaves through the global security landscape. With the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) being put on a burden-sharing timeline and Mr. Trump's cold transactional approach to security commitments worldwide, the Indo-Pacific too faces a pivotal moment. Yet, this represents a strategic opportunity for middle powers such as India and Australia to deepen their defence relationship. An alignment of interests Australia's strategic geography — bridging the Indian and Pacific Oceans with territories and military presence near Southeast Asia — complements India's maritime ambitions. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is experienced in coalition operations and can effectively enable Indian military capabilities, as seen in the recently implemented air-to-air refuelling arrangement. Australia's established relationships with Pacific Island nations align with India's growing interests. Most importantly, both nations share concerns about China's assertiveness and a common vision for sovereign resilience and regional stability. While Japan, South Korea, and Europe are all valuable partners for India, the New Delhi-Canberra defence relationship has quietly built bureaucratic muscles, which are skeletal in other relationships. Over the past decade, successive Australian Prime Ministers and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi have elevated this partnership, with Canberra viewing New Delhi as a 'top-tier security partner'. This foundation now provides the perfect launch pad to navigate a world where American security guarantees appear increasingly conditional. The bureaucratic muscles of the New Delhi-Canberra relationship include the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) 2020 and the 2+2 ministerial dialogue launched in 2021 for high-level strategic coordination. Practical cooperation has advanced through arrangements such as the Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA), which streamlines logistical support during joint exercises and humanitarian missions, and the November 2024 Air-to-Air refuelling arrangement allowing the Royal Australian Air Force to extend the operational reach of Indian aircraft. Further, key military exercises—AUSTRAHIND (Army), AUSINDEX (Navy), and participation in multilateral exercises such as Pitch Black and Malabar, demonstrate a decade of careful relationship-building. Neither New Delhi nor Canberra can be expected to fill the gap left by the United States alone. India remains tied to its continental predicament, with an active border dispute with China and both conventional and sub-conventional challenges from Pakistan. Similarly, Australia is undergoing substantive churn in the strategic imagination of its regional role, which involves a complete overhaul of its armed forces, acquisitions of new technologies under the AUKUS (Australia, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.), and increased outreach to smaller island states in its maritime geography. Given all this, how can both sides ensure that they rise up to face challenges in the regional security architecture? Five aspects need immediate attention: The focus areas First, it is time to rebalance defence engagement beyond comfortable silos. While Navy-to-Navy cooperation has flourished, there is a need to break down service barriers. This could be achieved through joint military exercises that reflect real world operations, and moving towards a dedicated forum for joint staff talks. Further, both sides should work towards a major joint, combined exercise within the next decade — one that truly tests their collective capabilities. Second, India's defence footprints in Canberra need to reflect the strategic importance of this relationship. It should consider upgrading its Defence Adviser (DA) position in Canberra to a one-star rank. Since this position has always been held by a Navy official, the addition of dedicated Army and Air Force personnel as assistants could help balance the service participation. Further, it needs to have dedicated people for its engagement with the Pacific Islands — work that is currently handled by the very efficient DA in Canberra. Third, India needs to elevate ground-up ideas from working-level personnel. Too often, strategic dialogues become exercises in diplomatic niceties rather than forums for hard truths. Including more uniformed professionals with operational insights and creating spaces for classified discussions can generate fresh thinking that both nations need. Simple initiatives such as fellowships for staff college graduates or regular war-gaming exchanges would build the mutual understanding that underpins genuine cooperation. Fourth, India should explore cooperation with Australia in the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) of naval vessels. New Delhi has successfully displayed its capabilities in this sector with active contracts with the U.S. and British navies. Further, exploring joint manufacturing and provision of patrol boats for small island security forces in the Indian Ocean Region and in the Pacific would again showcase the joint intentions and capabilities of the two sides. These aspects of cooperation in MRO and patrol boats may seem small, but their second and third-order impacts on exposure to each other's technologies and platforms can be immense. An opportunity for MSMEs Finally, defence industry collaboration demands a reset. Given that most of the bigger Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM)s in Australia are field offices of European, East Asian, or American firms, Indian OEMs have preferred to deal directly with their main offices in these countries. Cooperation in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector has been a missed opportunity. Defence and aerospace startups in both countries are at the forefront of cutting-edge technologies. Their outputs in components and dual-use technologies make them ideal to work with each other. Just like New Delhi, Canberra is also implementing an indigenisation programme in the defence sector. Therefore, there is potential to align the MSME sectors in both countries. To enable this, they could explore something similar to the U.S.-India INDUS X model. Gaurav Saini is Co-founder, Council for Strategic and Defense Research. Kim Heriot-Darragh is Research Fellow, Australia India Institute
Sky News AU
12 hours ago
- Business
- Sky News AU
Albanese refuses to give ADF a ‘dollar more than promised' amid US calls to spend more
Sky News host Andrew Bolt slams Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for his stance on not upgrading the ADF budget. 'We Australians must be so lucky, either that or we actually have a dangerously arrogant and ignorant prime minister,' Mr Bolt said. 'Apparently it is just Anthony Albanese, alone, who reckons there is no real danger of war and there is no need to give our Australian Defence Force a dollar more than is already promised.'
Perth Now
2 days ago
- Business
- Perth Now
‘Money back': Lambie's rogue reply to US demand
Australia should be looking to cut 'waste' in the Australian Defence Force before looking to pump more cash into it, independent senator Jacqui Lambie says. Senator Lambie on Monday reacted to the Trump administration calling on Canberra to boost the defence budget amid increased Chinese aggression the Indo-Pacific. A veteran and fierce advocate for the ADF, Senator Lambie quipped that the Albanese government should 'just ask Donald Trump to give us their money back for our submarines mate'. Senator Jacqui Lambie says Australia should cut ADF 'waste' before boosting the defence budget. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia 'It'd be nice to lift our defence spending – there is no doubt about that,' she told Sky News. 'Things are pretty tough out there at the moment, but I think it's more the waste. 'We waste so much money in defence procurement, and that's where we should be looking.' Senator Lambie pointed to the drawn-out build timelines for the AUKUS submarines. Under the trilateral defence pact, Australia is set to build five of the nuclear-powered boats in South Australia. The first is expected to be finished by the early 2040s. 'You've only got to see those submarines,' Senator Lambie said. 'Four billion dollars so far – we haven't got one scrap of bloody steel sitting in a harbour yet ready to go. 'I mean, that is just disgusting waste at its best.' Washington's call for Australia to step up military spending came from a bilateral meeting between Defence Minister Richard Marles and his US defence counterpart Pete Hegseth. The two senior officials met over the weekend on the sidelines of the Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore over the weekend. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Mr Hegseth used his address at the Shangri La Dialogue to warn of an 'imminent' threat from China, saying Beijing could invade Taiwan as early as 2027. Such a move would deal a major blow to global supply of semiconductors and likely massively disrupt vital trade routes. 'Let me be clear, any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world,' Mr Hegseth told the conference. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real and it could be imminent. 'We hope not but certainly could be.' China has criticised the United States for inciting tensions at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. This comes after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth warned allies at the summit that any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan would result in devastating consequences. A Chinese spokesperson responded to this, saying Beijing would continue to seek dialogue – however, Mr Hegseth's comments were inciting division and would destabilise the region. Asked what Australia could do in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, Senator Lambie replied: 'I don't know, have you seen the size of the Chinese army? 'That's the first thing, and the second thing is this – have you seen the condition that ours is in?' 'We have a personnel crisis in our military, and something needs to be done. 'The only way young people are going to go and join is when people in that uniform go out there and brag how great that job (is).' She said the recruitment crisis was 'the biggest problem you have with our national security right now'. 'People do not want to join defence, and people do not want to stay in,' Senator Lambie said. She also said Australian troops were 'not in the condition to being in a war zone'. Labor has pushed back against Mr Hegseth's call to lift the defence budget, with Anthony Albanese saying his government was already spending record amounts on the military. Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite on Monday echoed the Prime Minister. 'We are increasing our defence spending over the course of the next three years,' Mr Thistlethwaite told Sky News. 'Defence spending increases by about 10½ billion dollars and about $50bn over the course of the next decade.' Mr Thistlethwaite added that the Albanese government was increasing defence spending to '2½ per cent of GDP', including through AUKUS. The Trump administration's demand came just days after a leading defence think tank said Australia must bolster its immediate readiness to go to war or risk having a 'paper ADF'. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned that while Labor was spending on longer-term projects it was not pumping nearly enough cash into keeping Australia combat-ready in the near term.
West Australian
2 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
Australian Defence Force needs ‘waste' cuts, not more cash: Jacqui Lambie
Australia should be looking to cut 'waste' in the Australian Defence Force before looking to pump more cash into it, independent senator Jacqui Lambie says. Senator Lambie on Monday reacted to the Trump administration calling on Canberra to boost the defence budget amid increased Chinese aggression the Indo-Pacific. A veteran and fierce advocate for the ADF, Senator Lambie quipped that the Albanese government should 'just ask Donald Trump to give us their money back for our submarines mate'. 'It'd be nice to lift our defence spending – there is no doubt about that,' she told Sky News. 'Things are pretty tough out there at the moment, but I think it's more the waste. 'We waste so much money in defence procurement, and that's where we should be looking.' Senator Lambie pointed to the drawn-out build timelines for the AUKUS submarines. Under the trilateral defence pact, Australia is set to build five of the nuclear-powered boats in South Australia. The first is expected to be finished by the early 2040s. 'You've only got to see those submarines,' Senator Lambie said. 'Four billion dollars so far – we haven't got one scrap of bloody steel sitting in a harbour yet ready to go. 'I mean, that is just disgusting waste at its best.' Washington's call for Australia to step up military spending came from a bilateral meeting between Defence Minister Richard Marles and his US defence counterpart Pete Hegseth. The two senior officials met over the weekend on the sidelines of the Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore over the weekend. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Mr Hegseth used his address at the Shangri La Dialogue to warn of an 'imminent' threat from China, saying Beijing could invade Taiwan as early as 2027. Such a move would deal a major blow to global supply of semiconductors and likely massively disrupt vital trade routes. 'Let me be clear, any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world,' Mr Hegseth told the conference. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real and it could be imminent. 'We hope not but certainly could be.' China has criticised the United States for inciting tensions at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore. This comes after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth warned allies at the summit that any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan would result in devastating consequences. A Chinese spokesperson responded to this, saying Beijing would continue to seek dialogue – however, Mr Hegseth's comments were inciting division and would destabilise the region. Asked what Australia could do in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, Senator Lambie replied: 'I don't know, have you seen the size of the Chinese army? 'That's the first thing, and the second thing is this – have you seen the condition that ours is in?' 'We have a personnel crisis in our military, and something needs to be done. 'The only way young people are going to go and join is when people in that uniform go out there and brag how great that job (is).' She said the recruitment crisis was 'the biggest problem you have with our national security right now'. 'People do not want to join defence, and people do not want to stay in,' Senator Lambie said. She also said Australian troops were 'not in the condition to being in a war zone'. Labor has pushed back against Mr Hegseth's call to lift the defence budget, with Anthony Albanese saying his government was already spending record amounts on the military. Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite on Monday echoed the Prime Minister. 'We are increasing our defence spending over the course of the next three years,' Mr Thistlethwaite told Sky News. 'Defence spending increases by about 10½ billion dollars and about $50bn over the course of the next decade.' Mr Thistlethwaite added that the Albanese government was increasing defence spending to '2½ per cent of GDP', including through AUKUS. The Trump administration's demand came just days after a leading defence think tank said Australia must bolster its immediate readiness to go to war or risk having a 'paper ADF'. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned that while Labor was spending on longer-term projects it was not pumping nearly enough cash into keeping Australia combat-ready in the near term.
