Australia urged to join US against missile threat in Pacific

One of America’s leading missile experts has called on Australia to urgently step-up joint co-operation on missile defence.

The US missile defence system has had a patchy success rate in test attempts to shoot down ­incoming ballistic missiles.

One of America’s leading missile experts has called on Australia to urgently step up joint co-operation on missile defence in the face of the fast-growing threat from North Korea, China and Russia.

Ken Todorov, the former deputy director of the US Missile Defence Agency, also said he ­believed the US would be able to shoot down a North Korean long-range nuclear missile before it reached the US mainland.

“My confidence in the ability of the United States to defend its homeland remains high despite the increase in the threat,” he told The Australian in Huntsville, ­Alabama.

The US missile defence system has had a patchy success rate in test attempts to shoot down ­incoming ballistic missiles. But Mr Todorov said concerns about US defensive capability were exaggerated despite the rapid advances made by Pyongyang.

“The US system is very capable and to critics who say it didn’t ­operate exactly as it is supposed to, I say every time we fail a test we make the system even better,’’ he said.

The Australian Defence Force is examining options for a $2 billion project to upgrade and ­replace its air and missile defence system to defeat rapidly evolving missile threats in the region.

It has ruled out a US-style continental missile defence system but wants to build a stronger ­medium-range air and missile ­defence capability that includes greater protection for the navy’s new warships and other forces.

Mr Todorov said this pres­ented a special opportunity for the two countries to enhance co-­operation on missile defence and to think big about what they could do together to meet the growing missile threats across the region.

“We have seen the most rapid increase in terms of the capabilities of potential adversaries and it’s not just the North Koreans (who are developing long-range missiles) at an alarming rate,” said Mr Todorov, who is the director of global air and missile defence at US defence giant Northrop Grumman. Northrop is bidding to build Australia’s next generation air defence system, including a medium-range ground-to-air mis­sile capability. The new system will be data-linked with the ADF’s new F-35 fighters, its new warships and other key assets to provide instant warning and immediate response.

“The threat is growing in terms of growing quantity, quality and diversity, so if you look around the Pacific it makes sense for the US and Australia to work more ­closely together on the emerging threats,” Mr Todorov said.

“If there is any conflict or escalation then we will be in it ­to­gether; we are not going to be operating unilaterally.”

Malcolm Turnbull said last year that the Aegis missile defence system on the navy’s three new air warfare destroyers would also be fitted to the new fleet of nine frigates. “Recent events in our region have proven that Australia’s ­future frigates must be equipped to defend Australia from the threat of medium- and long-range missile attacks,” the Prime Minister said.

Northrop is one of several US bidders vying to develop a modern command-and-control system to provide a new data-linked capability for Australia’s air and missile defence as part of a defence project known as AIR 6500. The company will offer a system that can join the ADF’s new fighters, warships and other assets to identify incoming threats and provide an instant automated counter-­attack.

The government is working out the parameters of what it wants and is expected to make a decision later in the year with a view to having it operational by about 2022.

“Australia is doing it right and is focusing on architecture first so I think it could be a global leader in how this is done right,” Mr Tod­orov said.

Australia has had a formal working group on missile defence with the US since 2014.

Cameron Stewart, who is also US contributor to Sky News Australia, travelled to Huntsville courtesy of Northrop Grumman.