Page 130 - Australian Defence Magazine Dec-Jan 2023

HMS ASTUTE visits Perth, 2021
“We live in an increasingly complex strategic environment. It’s only through enhanced capability and international partnerships, like the strong, longstanding and unique relationship we have with the United Kingdom, that we will successfully meet the challenges ahead. AUKUS, in particular, is a step-change, resulting in a deepening of our defence capability and technological cooperation; it will help ensure the Indo- Pacific remains stable, secure and prosperous, and free from coercion.”
Brigadier Grant Mason, Head of Australian Defence Staff London
AUKUS
AUKUS is an enhanced trilateral defence and security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States that builds on longstanding bilateral ties and deepens cooperation on a range of security and defence capabilities.
The US and the UK will help Australia to acquire nuclear- powered submarines fully in line with their international obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
In addition, the three countries have committed to trilateral cooperation and development of joint advanced capabilities: quantum technologies, undersea capabilities, artificial intelligence, cyber capabilities, hypersonic and counter- hypersonic capabilities, and electronic warfare capabilities.
Astute Class submarine during Carrier Strike Group, 2021
Ongoing work in the Indo-Pacific
Contributing to the efforts of like-minded partners to provide stability and maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific is a UK priority. Following CSG21, the Royal Navy has deployed two Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs), HMS SPEY and HMS TAMAR, on a long-term mission to the region.
Over the past 12 months, HMS SPEY has engaged with several countries in the South Pacific, including Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu, working through and supporting regional architecture such as the Forum Fisheries Agency. These engagements have contributed to tackling shared challenges such as Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing and climate change, and in some cases developing relationships with nations that have not seen a UK warship presence for many years. HMS SPEY also contributed to the multinational Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief effort in response to the Tongan volcanic eruption.
Close cooperation between the RN and the RAN is also ever-present, perfectly illustrated with both ships undergoing a RAN-enabled RN Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) package in Darwin prior to HMS SPEY’s participation in Exercise KAKADU and also by the embarking of seariders from NUSHIP Arafura during a passage from Cairns to Darwin.
worked with the Papua New Guinea Defence Force as part of the Australian-led OLGETA WARRIOR programme, and British Army Engineers have integrated with Royal Australian Engineers on Exercise PUK PUK. The UK also maintains a battalion-sized, permanent garrison and world-class jungle warfare school in Brunei, supported by a detachment of RAF Puma helicopters.
At the strategic level, the UK has bolstered its defence network to include a Defence Advisor in Fiji and the Philippines, and a new British Defence Staff (BDS) Oceania based in Canberra. BDS Oceania will focus on enhancing and coordinating activity across the SW Pacific. Combined, these deployments represent a significant UK military investment in the region and in supporting its historic partners like Australia.
Looking ahead
An extensive programme of activity is planned for HMS SPEY and HMS TAMAR, both of which are deployed in the region for at least five years. On top of this, the UK is also planning new Maritime, Land and Air Force deployments to the region, building a larger persistent presence as it continues to recognise the vital importance of the Indo-Pacific and the requirement to support its closest friends.
More widely, the OPVs have participated in bilateral and multinational exercises alongside Japan, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, and our FPDA and Five Eyes allies.
The ships have participated in Exercises BERSAMA SHIELD, SAMASAMA/LUMBAS and KEEN SWORD and have also played an instrumental role in enforcing UN Security Council Resolutions against DPRK non-proliferation infringements.
On land, as at sea, the UK Armed Forces provide a long-term security and persistent diplomatic presence in the region. Since the beginning of 2022, the British Army has engaged with the Royal Australian Corps of Signals on Exercise RAVENS CYBER, and participated in Exercise CARTWHEEL with soldiers from 8/9 Royal Australian Regiment in Fiji. In Papua New Guinea, the Royal Gurkha Rifles have regularly