Sydney, Mar. 10, (dpa/GNA) – Australia plans to significantly increase the size and capability of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) by 2040, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Thursday.
Under the plan, the number of ADF personnel will increase by around 30 per cent by 2040, taking the total permanent force from 60,000 to almost 80,000 personnel.
The estimated cost of the expansion is at least 38 billion Australian dollars (27.7 billion US dollars) over the period to 2040.
“Our world is becoming increasingly uncertain so it’s important we take steps now to protect our people and our national interest over the coming decades,” the prime minister told reporters during a visit to a military base in Brisbane.
“We don’t leave our tasks of defence to others … we take it up ourselves,” Morrison added.
Defence Minister Peter Dutton said that growing the defence workforce was critical to delivering and operating the capabilities needed to secure Australia’s strategic environment, protect its interests, and build a “credible” military force.
On Monday, Morrison said Australia plans a new military base for nuclear submarines on its east coast in order to enhance the country’s strategic deterrent capability.
The planned base would also enable regular visits by US and British nuclear-powered submarines, according to Morrison.
Last year, the United States, Britain and Australia had announced a new “security alliance.”
Within that framework, US President Joe Biden announced that the United State would allow Australia to acquire nuclear-powered submarines to strengthen security and military deterrence in the Indo-Pacific.
The new three-way alliance is clearly directed at the military threat from China in the Indo-Pacific.
GNA