ADF boss weighs in on Middle East military capabilities
The head of the defense force has said Australia could deploy a warship to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to oil trade if desired, but the government wants to focus its military attention closer to home.
The country’s top military official has rejected suggestions that Australia should not send a Navy ship to the Middle East because of its aging fleet, arguing that it is more a matter of where the defense force should focus its efforts.
“I’m extremely confident that if the government made that decision, we could deploy a ship into that environment,” Admiral David Johnston told reporters at a briefing in Canberra on Thursday.
“I have no doubts about our ability to operate in a Strait of Hormuz-like role.
“But perhaps an equally important question is: Where are our priorities?”
The opposition and some defense analysts have argued that Australia did not send ships because it did not have the capacity to do so.
However, Defense Minister Richard Marles said this was not true.
“We have the talent and that’s not the problem,” he told ABC Radio on Friday.
“We still have important roles to play in the Indo-Pacific, where the bulk of our maritime efforts go,” Mr. Marles said.
“All these problems are not going away.”
Iran has reportedly said it will start charging $1 per barrel for oil passing through the Strait of Hormuz, which will be paid in cryptocurrency or Chinese yuan.
Before the start of the war between Iran, the USA and Israel, approximately one fifth of the world’s oil passed through the strait.
US President Donald Trump took aim at the reported death toll, urging Tehran to reverse course.
“There are reports that Iran is demanding a fee from tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz. They better not be, and if they are, they better stop immediately!” he said in a post on the Truth Social platform.
Former prime minister Tony Abbott said Australia had betrayed its values and let the US down by not sending troops to the Middle East.
“What is the point of having armed forces if they are not used to support our allies in a just cause?” He wrote an opinion piece in the Daily Telegraph.
Greens Senator David Shoebridge said Australia should focus on ensuring peace in the region and not try to keep the strait open.
“It is inconceivable that Australia’s military contribution will help keep the Strait of Hormuz open. That is none of our business. We did not create this crisis,” he told ABC Radio.
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