In an interview published by The Australian newspaper on June 25, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) suggested posting a “military attache” at the Australian Office in Taipei to liaise with Taiwan’s national security agencies.
As both Taiwan and Australia face a military threat from China, Wu said that this could help the two nations cooperate, showing that Canberra wants “to understand our perspectives on how to prevent the worst from happening.”
There is no military exchange between Taiwan and Australia. As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continually expands militarily in the South Pacific, China’s threat against peace in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region’s security grows daily. If the two nations could exchange military attaches, these could serve as “contact windows” for military liaison, and even expand security cooperation, signaling to the world their willingness to work together for regional peace.
Australia has been concerned about the situation in the Strait and is standing by the US in preventing the CCP’s military expansion and sovereignty disputes over the South China Sea. About 2,500 US Marines are stationed in Darwin. The Australian military has a total strength of just over 60,000 troops, but it is a sharp, smart and strong elite force despite its small size.
As China is a major security factor in the Asia-Pacific region, Australia in March 2001 formed the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue with the US, Japan and India, and the Trilateral Security Partnership (AUKUS) with the UK and the US since September of that year. Both groups aim to cooperate with allies to maintain regional peace.
To demonstrate its commitment to contain the CCP, the Australian government is to spend A$270 billion (US$185 billion) over the next 10 years to boost its defense sector, and focus its military buildout on two strategic weapons: drones and nuclear-powered submarines.
In February this year, Australia’s first indigenously developed military drone debuted at the Australian International Airshow in Melbourne. The Strix drone features vertical takeoff and landing capabilities and can be converted to conventional flight mode, with all the advantages of conventional aircraft and helicopters. With a flight range of up to 800km, the drone can also be equipped with the Australian Army’s Razor precision strike missiles, and can carry out reconnaissance, search, surveillance and even air-to-ground attack missions. It is scheduled to enter service in 2026.
Submarines would be another key focus of Australia’s national defense. The UK Defence Journal reported in March that Australia’s first SSN-AUKUS-class nuclear-powered attack submarine designed by the UK and the US would be built in the UK. The second one would be built later in Australia. Then, one submarine would be built there every three years. It is estimated that by 2050, Australia would have completed eight submarines to establish a nuclear-powered submarine fleet, which would be crucial to defending the nation’s coastline against the Chinese threat.
Taiwan should seize this strategic opportunity and work hard to surmount difficulties to promote security cooperation between the two countries, such as intelligence exchanges, cooperation between defense think tanks, cyberwarfare, humanitarian relief and other issues.
Drones and submarines are precisely the two strategic weapons that are the key development items during Taiwan’s push for “national defense autonomy” today, so there is much room for future military exchanges between Taiwan and Australia.
Yao Chung-yuan is a professor and former deputy director of the Ministry of National Defense’s strategic planning department.
Translated by Eddy Chang
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