Military Thread V11, #Condolences9MMRO :( 
Mar 7 2014, 11:11 PM
QUOTE
Asia's growth a challenge for Australia's military
March 8, 2014
David Wroe
National security correspondent
Australia's military faces a challenge to keep ahead of rising powers in the neighbourhood - including Indonesia - as it seeks to protect trade routes that are the lifeblood of the economy, Chief of the Defence Force David Hurley has warned.
General Hurley said on Friday that the defence white paper would need to take a fresh look at defence priorities in a tough budget situation and amid dramatic shifts in power in the region.
''In terms of our region … our relative economic advantage is declining,'' he told the University of Canberra's National Security Institute.
He singled out Indonesia's economy, noting it was already as big as Australia's measured in GDP and would be nearly twice as big in 20 years.
''That development by itself has important repercussions for our security and reinforces how critical our relationship with Indonesia is,'' he said. ''Regional economic growth is being translated into military modernisation.
''This is normal and natural, but it is raising the bar for us in seeking to maintain a capability edge.''
China this week announced a 12 per cent rise in defence spending. Japan and the Philippines are boosting spending in response to China's rise. Indonesia also signalled its intention to expand military spending in line with economic growth.
General Hurley said advances in military hardware and weaponry in the region meant that when the Australian Defence Force was deployed it would ''potentially face a more dangerous operating environment over the next 20 years''. He stressed the shifting power did not ''mean that there is a greater risk of a major conventional attack against Australia''. But it could evolve into a new order that might not continue to ''serve our national interests''.
With more than half of Australia's GDP generated from beyond its shores, a future maritime strategy that reached well beyond Australia's immediate waters to protect sea trade was essential, General Hurley said.
The Abbott government has ordered a new defence white paper to be delivered by early next year. Defence economist Mark Thomson, of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, told a Canberra conference last week the government would struggle to reach its goal to spend 2 per cent of GDP on defence, given other budget priorities.
General Hurley said: ''Greater clarity about the budget direction is critical to Defence in ensuring that major capability decisions are grounded in the strategy we need and the resources we have
March 8, 2014
David Wroe
National security correspondent
Australia's military faces a challenge to keep ahead of rising powers in the neighbourhood - including Indonesia - as it seeks to protect trade routes that are the lifeblood of the economy, Chief of the Defence Force David Hurley has warned.
General Hurley said on Friday that the defence white paper would need to take a fresh look at defence priorities in a tough budget situation and amid dramatic shifts in power in the region.
''In terms of our region … our relative economic advantage is declining,'' he told the University of Canberra's National Security Institute.
He singled out Indonesia's economy, noting it was already as big as Australia's measured in GDP and would be nearly twice as big in 20 years.
''That development by itself has important repercussions for our security and reinforces how critical our relationship with Indonesia is,'' he said. ''Regional economic growth is being translated into military modernisation.
''This is normal and natural, but it is raising the bar for us in seeking to maintain a capability edge.''
China this week announced a 12 per cent rise in defence spending. Japan and the Philippines are boosting spending in response to China's rise. Indonesia also signalled its intention to expand military spending in line with economic growth.
General Hurley said advances in military hardware and weaponry in the region meant that when the Australian Defence Force was deployed it would ''potentially face a more dangerous operating environment over the next 20 years''. He stressed the shifting power did not ''mean that there is a greater risk of a major conventional attack against Australia''. But it could evolve into a new order that might not continue to ''serve our national interests''.
With more than half of Australia's GDP generated from beyond its shores, a future maritime strategy that reached well beyond Australia's immediate waters to protect sea trade was essential, General Hurley said.
The Abbott government has ordered a new defence white paper to be delivered by early next year. Defence economist Mark Thomson, of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, told a Canberra conference last week the government would struggle to reach its goal to spend 2 per cent of GDP on defence, given other budget priorities.
General Hurley said: ''Greater clarity about the budget direction is critical to Defence in ensuring that major capability decisions are grounded in the strategy we need and the resources we have
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This post has been edited by azriel: Mar 7 2014, 11:24 PM
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