Admiral David Johnston has underscored the necessity for Australia to be ready to launch combat operations from its own soil, marking a significant shift in military strategy not seen since World War II. In a recent keynote address, Admiral Johnston laid out the new reality of warfare. He said Australia needed to be able to change its defense posture in response to a rapidly changing security environment.
The admiral’s remarks are a sign of growing concern over such threats in the region. Australia needs to make a quick re-evaluation of what its defence strategies should be. He highlighted how military technology is often rendered useless in as little as 12 weeks. This highlights the increasingly urgent need for investments in our defense capabilities.
A Shift in Military Strategy
Admiral Johnston acknowledged that this new mode of operation means there needs to be an entire reimagining of Australia’s national resilience and preparedness. He noted the likely requirement for Australia to base its operations and even conduct joint combat operations from Australian home territory.
“Perhaps finally we are having to reconsider Australia as a homeland from which we will conduct combat operations,” – Admiral Johnston
This belief represents a stark shift in military doctrine, particularly given the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. As the ongoing war in Ukraine demonstrates, the nature and context of warfare are more rapidly diverging from our models. It forces countries to renew and revise their military approaches.
Admiral Johnston admitted the burden its presence placed on Australia’s limited resources. Further, he noted the difficulty of producing a balanced defence budget. He properly stood up for the current strategy in defence spending – heavily shaped by Labor’s recent first-ever Defence Strategic Review.
“We need to be very clear about where we make investments in our technical capability,” – Admiral Johnston
The admiral’s position is echoed by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. To address these challenges, Connolly calls on Australia to increase its defense spending to 3.5 percent of its GDP. This recommendation highlights the imperative for Australia to urgently build its military capacity as regional tensions escalate.
Continuous Review and Strategic Planning
Admiral Johnston, in turn, recognized the landscape had shifted dramatically. The Australian government has recently moved to a biannual review cycle, first looking five years ahead. This welcome change should give Defence scope to perform ongoing assessments to determine how best to use its contested resources and adjust priorities accordingly.
“It’s unlike in the past… where the frequency or structure of reviews was an open-ended proposition,” – Admiral Johnston
This pledge to create regular reviews reflects a progressive mentality toward anticipating and tackling harmful security risks before they arise. Defence Chief said he was “very confident” of a new strategy being developed now. This new plan would make for a much better match against the security challenges of today, when it is finally released next year.
Admiral Johnston urged the need for independence and fearlessness in giving government unvarnished advice about defence spending trade-offs. He concluded by saying that national security is indeed important, but it has to be weighted against other pressing societal priorities.
“The Australian community wants education, a health system to look after the elderly… we do that unambiguously and without avoiding some of those key areas of risk,” – Admiral Johnston
Regional Partnerships and Security Concerns
Amidst these discussions, Papua New Guinea’s Defence Minister Billy Joseph reiterated his country’s commitment to maintaining strong defence partnerships with Australia while recognizing its economic ties with China. In doing so, he stressed that Papua New Guinea seeks to strengthen ties with countries which uphold similar values in defence.
“We all appreciate the threats. The circumnavigation of Australia by the PLAN vessels, they came through our space as well, they did some live drills in the Tasman Sea,” – Mr. Joseph
Admiral Johnston’s comments reflect a broader concern over regional security dynamics, particularly following recent military activities in Australia’s vicinity. He made clear that Defence is paying close attention to these trends and putting national security-first strategies at the top of the priority list.
“So we’re not ignorant of what we’re dealing with, but have to respect each sovereign state, how they each make these [decisions] on how much they want to spend on defence,” – Mr. Joseph
Conversations between advocates and local, state and federal elected leaders continue. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, for one, will be looking forward to the G7 summit in Canada, where the increase in defence spending is sure to be in the spotlight. Leaders should be prepared to enter into discussions about cooperative approaches to tackling collective security threats.
