Australia has launched its most extensive military reforms since World War II.
Defence Minister Richard Marles announced this at the Shangri-La Dialogue forum in Singapore.
According to him, the reason is the sharp deterioration in global security and increasing threats in the Indo-Pacific region. The head of the Defence Department said the armed forces are undergoing a deep transformation focused on increasing combat power. Naval development is a priority: over 40% of the defence budget is allocated to the navy.
The Minister noted that the government is implementing a large-scale armament program, including the construction of nuclear submarines under the AUKUS partnership, as well as new destroyers, frigates, and unmanned naval platforms. Marles characterized the current strategic situation as the most complex and dangerous for Australia since 1945. Among the main challenges, he cited sabotage against underwater infrastructure, tensions in the South China Sea, the situation around Iran, and the activities of an unregulated "shadow fleet." According to the Minister, the post-Cold War era has definitively ended, and states that do not invest in credible defence capabilities will inevitably be vulnerable to external pressure and risk losing their sovereignty.
