Defence spending must reflect awareness of external threats

Greg Sheridan is right in flagging this critical juncture in the US-Australian alliance (“Hegseth-PM confrontation a historic moment”, 3/6).

There is not a security expert who does not recognise the undisguised intention of the People’s Republic of China to establish domination over the Indo-Pacific region. Whether this intent is to establish such ascendancy by force or through some sort of political manoeuvring, we cannot know.

Affluence and political naivety have encouraged past governments – both Liberal and Labor – to neglect the maintenance of adequate defence of this country.

If we expect our only other source of defence – our American allies – to come to our assistance we must at least attempt to rearm. Otherwise our leaders may become mere commissars of a foreign power in a country we would no longer recognise.

Vicki Sanderson, Cremorne, NSW

Many of British Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s policies are risible, but at least he recognises the serious threat from Russia and he aims to increase defence spending and place the armed forces on a war footing so the country has “peace through strength”.

Our lily-livered Prime Minister, however, despite Chinese warships navigating our coastline, the huge build-up of Chinese military power in Southeast Asia and constant warnings, appears to think we can continue to have “peace through weakness”.

Lisa Sanderson, Auchenflower, Qld

Peter Jennings provides a detailed catalogue of what should be Australia’s defence priorities and points out this government’s threadbare rationale for ignoring them (“Albanese about to get brutal lesson in great power politics”, 3/6). His list of priorities is what was missing from the Coalition’s defence announcements before the federal election.

Clearly Richard Marles, of the Labor Right, has little influence in the partyroom but he had to squirm through his meeting with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth while Anthony Albanese was rejecting America’s demands.

In real terms, the claim of “investment” in this nation’s capability amounts to cuts in defence spending, and “investment” in relationships translates to appeasing China.

John Morrissey, Hawthorn, Vic

Of all of our senior politicians, Anthony Albanese alone possesses the political capital and goodwill to sell a substantial and urgent increase in defence spending.

Over and above the list of must-haves identified by Greg Sheridan in his excellent article, a large-scale investment in anti-shipping missile systems, to deny further access by the Chinese navy to both the Coral Sea and the northern coast of Western Australia, is non-negotiable. Mr Prime Minister, the ball is now in your court.

Mitch McDonald, Abbotsford, NSW

Our Prime Minister leads a government with the responsibility to ensure the effective defence of this nation yet speaks in utter defiance of the demands of the one nation capable of assisting us in our defence (“US ’n’ them: PM defends low spend”, 3/6)

President Donald Trump has admonished European nations for their low defence spending, threatening to leave them to their own devices if attacked by an enemy. Can we imagine the disaster to our nation’s security if the Trump administration were to do the same with us?

The Albanese government is happy to spend billions of dollars on achieving net zero by 2050 while leaving our defence budget bare. The government’s cop-out is a shameful disgrace.

Kevin Begaud, Dee Why, NSW

The inadequacy of Anthony Albanese and his key ministers in addressing the threats to world peace is increasingly apparent.

From Iran’s role in the Middle East tragedies, to China’s belligerence in the Indo-Pacific and Russia’s vandalism in Europe, Anthony Albanese and his ministers continually respond to the ever-growing risks of major conflict from these countries with provincial, voter-centric non sequiturs, seemingly intended to keep an often compliant local media at bay.

It is time that this Labor government connected politically with our global allies in declaring a stand against the actions of authoritarian dictatorships.

John Bell, Bathurst, NSW