Major General Ash Collingburn has issued a stark warning to troops at a military parade in Townsville, declaring Australia's army is being prepared for war. "Make no mistake, I am preparing our expeditionary division for war," he said on Friday.
The announcement comes as defence experts warn the nation can no longer depend on the United States, prompting local manufacturers to answer the call for Australian-made military technology.
Unmanned vessel attracts global interest
Among the innovations is the Ocius Bluebottle, an unmanned vessel under eight metres long that is completely wind, wave and solar-powered. The craft can silently hunt submarines for six months at a time, dragging sonar cables deep into the water.
"We don't need any crew and we don't need any fuel and it doesn't need any food and it doesn't get tired," said Robert Dane from Ocius Technology. The world-leading technology has navies lining up to buy them, with Australia securing 55 to patrol its waters.
"We're 100 per cent [an] Australian company, 100 per cent Australian design," Dane added.
Concerns over defence readiness
Australia is currently in an arms race amid a global threat environment unparalleled in decades. But some experts are concerned about the nation's readiness.
"Are we ready for that? That's kind of debatable, I would say," said Peter Robinson, a former RAAF fighter pilot turned defence consultant. Robinson says Australia has modern, expensive, complex kit, but not much of it. "How long could we independently sustain those sort of operations? I think that's questionable," he said.
Despite having the 15th largest military budget in the world, Australia ranks 71st in personnel, 57th on naval vessels, 31st on aircraft and 82nd on artillery pieces. The army's 60 field guns wouldn't last more than a day-and-a-half in the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Robinson said.
There are also fears of sovereign risk, with at least 50 per cent of defence assets foreign-made and almost every aircraft American. Australia's defence strategy places heavy dependence on the United States, but recent questions over US support for Ukraine and NATO have raised doubts about the reliability of that key partner.
Government backs local defence industry
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy insists Australia can have both self-reliance and alliance support. "We can have self-reliance within the alliance," he said.
This month the federal government launched a new strategy to back Australian-made defence equipment. "Australians absolutely can step up," Dane said.
But even that comes with a warning. The new Hunter-class future frigate costs $1.4 billion when built in England, but four times as much when built in Australia.
