DEFENCE POLICY – AUSTRALIA

Turnbull slams secrecy over AUKUS demands

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Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 12 : 10-Dec-25

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated after the annual AUSMIN talks that his nation is seeking "practical, realistic" ways to improve AUKUS alliance. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Richard Marles says the federal government is still "working through" the Pentagon’s review of the alliance, which is believed to have recommended a number of changes. Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull contends that Marles should reveal details of the changes that the US has requested before the government makes its next $US1bn AUKUS downpayment. Turnbull adds that there is still a real possibility that Australia will not receive any Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines.

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UNITED STATES. DEPT OF DEFENSE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE

We give up $8b defence dividend

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 4 : 3-Dec-25

The federal government’s support for local military suppliers is under scrutiny in the wake of its plans to establish an independent defence procurement agency. Government data shows that the list of the nation’s 15 biggest suppliers of military equipment includes just two that are Australian-owned; they accounted for about $5bn of the $87bn worth of procurement contracts over the last five years. The rest of these contracts were awarded to the subsidiaries of foreign defence contractors. Modelling undertaken on behalf of the Sovereign Australian Prime Alliance suggests that a modest increase in procurement from locally-owned defence companies could boost GDP by up to $8.1bn and create more than 25,000 jobs.

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Dire defence warning to PM, at eleventh hour

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Original article by Jamie Walker
The Australian – Page: 1 & 5 : 12-Nov-25

Retired army major-general Greg Melick has used a Remembrance Day speech at the Australian War Memorial to criticise the federal government’s spending on defence. Melick contended that Australia needs a "grand strategy" to be prepared for war amid the deteriorating security situation in the Indo-Pacific region; he warned of the risk that defence spending may become a "matter of what we can afford and not what we need". The nation’s defence budget is slated to rise from about two per cent of GDP at present to 2.33 per cent over the next decade. Melick is also the outgoing national president of the RSL.

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AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL, THE RETURNED AND SERVICES LEAGUE OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Albanese hits critical mass

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Original article by Geoff Chambers, Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 22-Oct-25

The $US8.5bn ($13bn) critical minerals framework agreement between Australia and the US will result in each country contributing at least US$1bn to critical minerals and rare earths projects over the next six months. They include a gallium project in Western Australia and the Nolans rare earths project in the Northern Territory. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump says the AUKUS alliance will be a "deterrence" to Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific region. Trump contends that AUKUS will not be needed to defend Taiwan, because he does not think China will invade the self-governed territory. Trump has also ruled out reviewing the current tariffs on Australian imports, stating that the nation "pays among the lowest tariffs"; this includes a baseline tariff of 10 per cent and a 50 per cent levy on steel and aluminium products

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UNITED STATES. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

PM sticks to defence dollars before US visit

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 16-Sep-25

Australia’s spending on defence is slated to rise to 2.33 per cent of GDP by 2033, compared with just over two per cent at present. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese contends that defence spending should be measured as a total dollar amount, arguing that people are "too fixated" on the GDP figure. The federal government continues to face pressure from the Trump administration to increase defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP; however, Albanese contends that the US should take into account factors such as the in-kind military support it receives from Australia and the security partnerships that the nation has struck in the Asia-Pacific region.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET

AUKUS at risk of failing: experts

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Original article by Joe Kelly
The Australian – Page: 6 : 27-Aug-25

The Center for Strategic & International Studies recently recommended narrowing the focus of the so-called ‘Pillar II’ of the AUKUS defence alliance. John Lee from the Hudson Institute says this proposal is understandable given the federal government’s insufficient allocation of funding for defence and Pillar II in particular. Lee adds that Labor needs to build a public case for an increased commitment to AUKUS and Pillar II. Meanwhile, Strategic Analysis Australia director Michael Shoebridge contends that the aim of AUKUS is to shift the military balance in the Indo-Pacific region away from China in order to deter war. He says AUKUS will fail if the alliance’s partners cannot explain this common purpose to their constituents.

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CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, STRATEGIC ANALYSIS AUSTRALIA

Australia urged to give AUKUS sub commitments to US in event of war

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Original article by Stephen Dziedzic
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 26-Aug-25

US think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies has written a report on the AUKUS defence pact, which will see Australia get Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from the US. With the Trump administration currently reviewing the pact, the CSIS calls on Australia to give the US ‘concrete commitments’ on how it would deploy the submarines in the event of war, while it urges the Trump administration not to abandon the pact.

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CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

Offshore option as Japan frigate wins

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 6-Aug-25

Defence Minister Richard Marles has advised that a contract for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to build three general purpose frigates will be signed in early 2026. Marles says the Japanese frigate is the best option for Australia; Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems also pitched for the contract. The frigates will be built in Japan, and are slated to be delivered between 2029 and 2034. An additional eight Mogami-class frigates will be built by Austal at its Henderson shipyard in Perth. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy has conceded that the shipyard may not be able to accommodate the first three vessels to be built in Australia, but Western Australia’s Premier Roger Cook says they must be built in his state.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES LIMITED, THYSSENKRUPP MARINE SYSTEMS, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PREMIER AND CABINET

Australia won’t receive AUKUS nuclear submarines unless US doubles shipbuilding, admiral warns

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Original article by Ben Doherty
The Guardian Australia – Page: Online : 29-Jul-25

The rate of construction of Virginia-class submarines is currently about 1.13 per year. This is well below the US Navy’s estimate that two of the nuclear-powered vessels will need to be built each year to meet its own needs, and 2.33 per year to supply vessels to Australia via the AUKUS alliance. US Admiral Daryl Caudle has told a Senate committee that a "100% improvement" in the shipbuilding rate will be necessary if the US is to sell any of the vessels to Australia. Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull says there is a "very, very high" chance that Australia will never buy a Virginia-class submarine; he has questioned the federal government’s lack of a ‘plan B’, given that AUKUS-class vessels will not enter service until the 2040s.

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UNITED STATES NAVY, UNITED STATES. SENATE COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES

Australia can’t sue UK for dud subs

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Original article by Andrew Tillett
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 29-Jul-25

Defence Minister Richard Marles and British counterpart John Healey recently signed a 50-year AUKUS treaty. The document was tabled in federal parliament on Monday, and many of its clauses heavily favour the UK. Amongst other things, Australia will not be able to sue the UK if there are defects in the design of the AUKUS-class nuclear-powered submarines or any equipment supplied by the UK; this includes the nuclear reactors that will be made in the UK and installed in the vessels to be built in Adelaide. In addition, although the two nations will jointly design the new vessels, Britain will approve the final design and will effectively be able to veto any Australian input into this.

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AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF DEFENCE, GREAT BRITAIN. MINISTRY OF DEFENCE