Australia to sharply increase defense spending with focus on Indo-Pacific
Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during the launch of the 2020 Defence Strategic Update at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra, Australia, July 1, 2020. /Reuters

Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks during the launch of the 2020 Defence Strategic Update at the Australian Defence Force Academy in Canberra, Australia, July 1, 2020. /Reuters

Australia will boost defense spending by 40 percent over the next 10 years, buying long-range military assets that will be focused on the Indo-Pacific region, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Wednesday.

Morrison said Australia will spend 270 billion Australia dollars (about 186.5 billion U.S. dollars) over the next 10 years to acquire longer-range strike capabilities across air, sea and land.

The spending is a sharp boost compared with the 10-year spending of 195 billion Australia dollars Morrison proposed in 2016.

Morrison said Australia will also pivot its military focus to the Indo-Pacific region. "We want an Indo-Pacific free from coercion and hegemony. We want a region where all countries, large and small, can engage freely with each other and be guided by international rules and norms," Morrison said in a speech in Canberra.

Australia's muscular posturing towards the Pacific is seen as a signal that Canberra intends to cut its reliance on Washington and be more assertive on its dealing with Beijing.

"China is the unspoken elephant in the room," said Sam Roggeveen, director of the Sydney-based Lowy Institute's International Security Program. "While it's absolutely right that we focus on our region, but buying long-range missiles – particularly ones for land targets – could invite a response from Beijing."

Morrison said Australia would first buy 200 long-range anti-ship missiles from the U.S. Navy for 800 million Australia dollars, and would also consider developing hypersonic missiles that can travel at least at five times the speed of sound.

The defense spending will please U.S. President Donald Trump, who has accused allies of taking Washington's protection for granted.

But Australia's defense spend will do little for relations with China – its largest trading partner.

In 2018, the Australian government banned Huawei from participating in the construction of 5G telecommunications networks in Australia. Bilateral ties have in recent months been soured by Canberra's call for an independent inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

China has suspended beef imports from four of Australia's largest meat processors and imposed hefty tariffs on barley, although both sides say that is unrelated to the latest spat.

(With input from Reuters)