Peter Dutton to announce $3.5b hi-tech defence upgrade to keep Indo-Pacific secure

Australian fighter jets and naval vessels will be armed sooner with long-range missiles under a $3.5b plan to fast-track key weapons purchases.

Australian fighter jets will be armed with long-range strike missiles years earlier than expected as part of a major $3.5b military upgrade.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton will on Tuesday announce the accelerated acquisition of improved weapons, with a focus on sovereign-guided weapons enterprise.

Mr Dutton will say that the accelerated military upgrade, as well as the weapons enterprise, is imperative given the complex and challenging strategic environment on Australia’s doorstep in the Indo-Pacific.

“We’re very worried about what’s happening in the Indo-Pacific, and China is on a course with regards to Taiwan,” Mr Dutton told the Nine Network.

“We want to make sure that we have the ability to deter any act of aggression against our country.

“We need to be realistic about what happens over the next few years. Everything we’re doing is designed to try and deter any act of aggression.”

Mr Dutton said Chinese President Xi Jinping was an “autocrat”, and the military’s mounting actions were “worrying”.

“China is arming herself with more nuclear weapons. We’ve got to be realistic about the threat.”

Australian fighter jets will be armed with long-range strike missiles from 2024 – three years ahead of schedule. Picture: Getty Images

Under the plan, Australia’s Super Hornets, and in future the F-35A Lightning II, will be armed with JASSM-ER missiles capable of engaging targets at a range of up to 900km by 2024, three years ahead of schedule.

From the same year, Hobart-class destroyers and Anzac frigates will be equipped with new Norwegian-made Naval Strike Missiles.

Mr Dutton says this will be a significant enhancement to Australia’s maritime strike capability years ahead of schedule.

“These world-class strike weapon systems will equip our forces to better protect Australia’s maritime approaches and when necessary, contribute to coalition operations in our region,” Mr Dutton said.

Under the sovereign guided weapons enterprise, US defence giants Raytheon and Lockheed Martin Australia will work to “rapidly increase” Australia’s ability to maintain and manufacture guided weapons.

They will also work to provide an alternative for the US missile supply chain.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton said the deal was key to protecting Australia against the rising risk within the Indo-Pacific. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Three local partners – the Australian Missile Corporation, the Sovereign Missile Alliance and Aurecon Advisory – will support Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to develop the sovereign missile industry.

“Australia’s strategic environment is becoming more complex and challenging, the Indo-Pacific now sits at the epicentre of global strategic competition,” Mr Dutton said.

“It is imperative that we work closely with like-minded countries and industry partners to develop a more capable military force to defend Australia.

“We know we need to work closely with our partners to bolster our self-reliance and this is another major step in delivering that sovereign capability here in Australia.”