Andrew Hastie says overreliance on US has weakened Australia in ANZAC-themed Menzies speech
Liberal frontbencher Andrew Hastie said Australia was allowing an over-reliance on the US military to weaken the country.
Speaking at the Robert Menzies Center on Thursday, the opposition defense and sovereign capacity spokesman argued the country needed to rebuild its industrial and defense capabilities to rebalance the ANZUS Treaty and become a better partner for Australia’s historic ally.
“Put plainly, if ANZUS is to continue for another 75 years, we need to invest in our industrial base and defense force,” Hastie said.
The Afghanistan veteran and former SAS soldier said that since the signing of the ANZUS treaty in 1951 and Australia’s defense becoming more dependent on US power, “we have forgotten the hard lessons of war and handed over our security to the US”.
“This has cost us sovereign capabilities like a strong defense industry and our freedom to act strategically in ways we are now exploring.”
Hastie said Australia had neglected its treaty commitment for the past 30 years to improve its capacity to self-defense and protect its partners.
He said ANZUS was built on the understanding that both sides would improve their military capabilities and that Australia should return itself to the standard of self-sufficiency established by Robert Menzies in the post-war period.
Hastie added that Australia’s navy has not kept up with drone and missile technology and is not prepared to deploy ships to a conflict like the US-Israeli war against Iran.
“Even if we put young Australians in harm’s way, we would be left without the close support of the US Navy.”
Hastie said the United States has made clear in its National Defense Strategy that it will seek only to guarantee its own strategic interests.
“President Trump confirms this fact almost daily with strong messages about America’s traditional allies.”
Hastie said Trump’s war in Iran had also exposed Australia’s “industrial atrophy”, with the global oil shock squeezing markets and petrol and diesel prices soaring. He called for Australia to extract and refine its own oil to provide supplies for the future.
Brittany Busch is the federal politics correspondent for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email.
