Japan is showing increased support for Taiwan in the face of relentless pressure from China. Here’s why Taiwan matters so much to Tokyo and what it’s prepared to do about it.
Scott Morrison will releases the government’s 2020 Defence Strategic Update on Wednesday. The government’s updated defence funding will see investment in capability grow to $270 billion over the next decade.
China’s rising influence in the region has alarmed many defence experts. But the question remains: would Australia ever need to fight China on its own?
Joel Carrett/AAP
The Australia-Japan foreign and defence ministers’ ‘two-plus-two’ talks, due to be held in Japan before Christmas, are being deferred because of Marise Payne’s recent illness.
The French submarine, Shortfin Barracuda, designed by the DCNS group, to be the design base for Australia’s new fleet.
AAP Image/DCNS Group
Malcolm Turnbull will visit China this week in his first time there as prime minister. The two-day trip, including visits to Shanghai and Beijing, will juggle trade and political issues.
Tony Abbott’s previous timetable for acquiring new submarines was criticised in parliament by Malcolm Turnbull.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
Australia’s defence forces manage huge swathes of land which are home to valuable ecosystems. The new defence white paper finally acknowledges the importance of looking after them.
To say the defence white paper was “much anticipated” would be an understatement. Was it worth the wait in the end? That rather depends on who you are and what your assessment of the risks Australia faces…
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull presents the defence white paper at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
The defence white paper will pledge an additional $29.9 billion in defence spending over the coming decade and support for businesses to innovate in areas such as cyber security and aeronautics.
Defence diplomacy will not substantially transform the overall picture of Asia’s ongoing political cleavages.
AAP
The coming defence white paper presents an opening for the Turnbull government to place its stamp on national security priorities and to align planning and policy settings with its strategic vision.
Tony Abbott has announced a commitment to defence shipbuilding in South Australia.
Ben Macmahon/AAP
The government has unveiled a centrepiece of its coming Defence White Paper, bringing forward a $40 billion program to build surface warships.
Climate change will affect defence personnel themselves, as well as the kind of situations they find themselves deployed in.
AAP Image/Australian Department of Defence, Corporal Ricky Fuller
Nations such as the United States have treated climate change as a major security threat for years. The Australian government’s forthcoming Defence White Paper cannot afford to ignore the issue.
Should Australia seek a ballistic missile defence capability, like that of the United States?
US Department of Defense