Latest news with #combatReadiness
News.com.au
3 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Australia's defence spending creating a ‘paper ADF', think tank warns
Australia must boost its immediate readiness to go to war or risk having a 'paper ADF', a leading defence think tank warns. In a report published on Thursday, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) said 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. The report, authored by former Home Affairs deputy secretary Marc Ablong, called for 'defence funding to be increased to reflect the reality of the threats facing Australia'. It said that while the Albanese government 'claims to have made a 'generational investment in Australia's defence', that investment has been put off for another generation', pointing out that the bulk of the billions pledged by Labor would not kick in until after 2029. With the Albanese government itself predicting a major global conflict by 2034 and analysts warning of a US-China conflict before 2030, Mr Ablong argued that the money was not flowing fast enough. 'While consistency can often be a virtue, it reveals a businessâ€'asâ€'usual approach to a world now in crisis and conflict,' the report said. 'The rhetoric recognising the threats isn't translating into action to deal with the threats, meaning the government continues to deprioritise the readiness and sustainability of the current forceâ€'inâ€'being with the largest spending increases on capability sustainment tied to the Fâ€'35 Lightning force ($190m) and Collinsâ€'class submarines ($235m).' It warned that the 'Indoâ€'Pacific region is undeniably an epicentre of a burgeoning rearmament'. 'Australia is a part of that rearmament, although others are moving much faster than us,' the report said. 'The current military correlation of forces between Australia and our region is growing. 'Consequentially, a central concern we express in this report is the gap between strategic intent and tangible capability delivery.' Mr Ablong wrote that the 'timelines for major acquisitions', such as AUKUS, 'extend well into the next decade and beyond' and did little to deal with immediate threats. 'While those future capabilities are strategically important, they offer little immediate enhancement, thus creating a 'paper ADF' that lacks readiness for nearâ€'term conflict scenarios,' the report said. 'That prioritisation of future over current readiness contributes to a hollowing out of the force, in which personnel shortages and limited munitions stockpiles exacerbate sustainability concerns.' Anthony Albanese has hit back at the report, saying ASPI needed to 'have a look at themselves as well and the way that they conduct themselves in debates'. 'We've got considerable additional investment going into defence – $10bn,' the Prime Minister told the ABC. 'We're lifting up our defence expenditure up to 2.4 per cent of GDP, we're investing in assets and our capability. 'We're also investing in our relationships in the region, that's very important as well.' Mr Albanese said the think tank was 'run by people who've been in a position to make a difference in the past as part of former governments', adding that it was 'predictable, frankly'.
Fox News
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Defense secretary announces pay raises for Army paratroopers: 'We have you and your families in mind'
In a speech Thursday in North Carolina to soldiers of the 82nd Airborne Division, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth pledged to restore what he called the U.S. military's "warrior ethos" and announced pay raises for paratroopers. Speaking during All American Week at Fort Bragg, Hegseth laid out President Donald Trump's vision focused on combat readiness, merit-based standards, and investment in the American warfighter. "We're going to bring it back to the basics," Hegseth said. "We're going to restore the warrior ethos… and we are across our formations, a standard that's set here every single day." According to the Department of Defense, Hegseth used the occasion to announce an increase in hazardous duty incentive pay, known as jump pay. It will rise from $150 to $200 per month for paratroopers, and for the first time, jumpmasters will receive an additional $150 on top of their existing pay. "For the first time in 25 years… we are increasing jump pay," Hegseth said. "Not only are we increasing jump pay, but… jumpmasters… are going to receive an additional $150 a month in incentive pay." He added: "Here's to our paratroopers, our jumpmasters, who do the difficult things in difficult places that most Americans can never imagine." Hegseth told the crowd that troops remain the focus of every major Pentagon decision. "Inside the corridors of the Pentagon, you are on our minds, with the decisions we make in budgets, in planning, in deployments, in orders, in reorganizations. We have you and your families in mind." In his remarks, Hegseth shared a core defense strategy promoted by Trump: prioritize readiness, reject identity politics, and reassert American deterrence. "We will focus on readiness, on training, on warfighting, on accountability, on standards. Black, white, male, female, doesn't matter. We're going to be colorblind and merit-based warfighters just like you are here in the 82nd." This return to fundamentals, Hegseth argued is necessary to rebuild the force and deter growing global threats. "President Trump is committed to historic investments inside our formations. Our promise to you is that when the 82nd Airborne is deployed… you will be equipped better than any other fighting force in the world." Drawing a contrast with prior administrations, Hegseth referenced global instability, including the war in Ukraine, the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel, and the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. "Unfortunately, for a number of years, the world watched and wondered where American leadership and American strength was," he said. "By putting America first, we will reestablish peace through strength." Hegseth closed by honoring the legacy and future of the 82nd. "Like those who came before you, you keep showing the world the stuff you're made of. Because we know you are ready for the important work that lies ahead." The Army office of Public Affairs did not immediately return Fox News Digital's request for comment.
