EDITORIAL: Run-down defence assets limit strategic options
If the nations Donald Trump has named don’t agree to help in the Strait of Hormuz, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese might get a phone call.
Australia’s decision to reject sending ships to help protect vessels from Iranian attacks in the Strait of Hormuz raises a tricky question.
Are we not helping because we don’t want to, or because we are unable to? The answer will have ramifications well beyond this crisis.
At the weekend United States President Donald Trump named China, France, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom as countries that could deploy ships to help ensure navigation through the Strait, a crucial waterway for global oil supplies.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Mr Trump said countries that benefit from the vital waterway should play a role in ensuring it is secure.
On Monday Transport Minister Catherine King noted that Australia had sent an aircraft to help the United Arab Emirates’ defence against Iranian strikes — a reference to an E-7A Wedgetail surveillance aircraft and personnel.
“But we won’t be sending a ship to the Strait of Hormuz. We know how incredibly important that is. That’s not something that we’ve been asked, or we’re contributing,” she said.
Shadow Defence Minister James Paterson said recent history showed that Australia hadn’t been able to support similar threats to global shipping due to limits within its national fleet.
He referenced the 2023 Red Sea crisis, when Australia declined a formal request from the then-Biden administration to send ships as part of a US-led coalition to safeguard commercial shipping attacked by Houthi rebels in Yemen.
“We weren’t able to provide any naval vessels because we didn’t have ones that could protect themselves that were available for that mission,” Mr Paterson said.
That lack of readiness is in contrast to previous calls to help in the Middle East.
In 1990 a US-led coalition went to Kuwait’s aid in what became known as the First Gulf War. Australia sent more than 1800 personnel and Royal Australian Navy ships enforced maritime sanctions, escorted coalition vessels, conducted boarding operations and provided logistical support. Army and Air Force personnel were also part of the operation.
In 2003 Australia joined the US-led “Coalition of the willing” to intervene in Iraq and remove Iraq’s president, Saddam Hussein, from power. Personnel from all three branches of the Australian Defence Force served in the war.
The month after the refusal to send a ship in 2023, Defence Minister Richard Marles revealed ADF personnel had been involved in the planning of US-led air strikes on Houthi targets, which were “about maintaining freedom of navigation” and “maintaining global trade that is completely central to Australia’s national interests”. Sound familiar?
Fast forward to Monday. Military sources say Australia’s maritime support options are limited given the overall size of the Navy and that two of its three Air Warfare Destroyers are out of the water for maintenance and upgrades.
Allowing defence assets to run down narrows our options. We are reliant on the US. If the nations Mr Trump has named don’t agree to help in the Strait of Hormuz, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese might get a phone call. He should be ready for a Presidential blast.
