Well-known Chinese news site Sina (NASDAQ: SINA) recently reported that Australian Prime Minister Albanese released the final assessment of the Defense Report in the House of Parliament . In November last year, the Australian government decided to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the defense capabilities of the Australian military. The final results will be summarized into a new strategy that will help strengthen the national military-industrial complex and ensure that the military has the necessary defensive resources. The national defense strategy that once focused on territorial defense can no longer satisfy Australia’s ambitions. Looking at China from a distance, “Australia must deter potential enemies before they reach the coastline, whether it is at sea, in the air or on the Internet.” According to Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles, this is the first time in 35 years that Australia has redefined the mission of its military. The Defense Report identified the US-UK-Australia Trilateral Security Partnership (AUKUS) as a key priority which aims to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered submarines to strengthen its security and military deterrence in the Indo-Pacific region. The Report also laid out a large-scale reform of the Ministry of Defense and related agencies. It will be carried out in order to plan the development of the military-industrial complex more accurately and systematically. Another priority is to increase long-range precision strike capabilities. The Australian Army will be the first to have missiles with a maximum range of 300 kilometers. Later it will reach the range of more than 500 kilometers through acquiring precision-guided missiles. The current Army missile range is only 40 kilometers. Australia will also strengthen cooperation with Japan, India and other Pacific and Southeast Asian countries. The Report mentioned China nine times, although the final public version did not list China as a direct military threat to Australia. The Report repeatedly cited China’s military spending and military actions as one of the reasons for Australia’s defense reform.
Source: Sina, April 25, 2023
https://news.sina.com.cn/c/2023-04-25/doc-imyrpwqv4527208.shtml