Australia wants to build itself into a US missile production base? One ring. This year | Missile | United States
After meeting with visiting US counterparts on the 29th, Australian Defense Department officials said that Australia plans to establish a missile manufacturing industry in two years. In addition to developing domestically produced missiles from almost scratch, it will also become a part of the US weapons supply chain.
After meeting with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Brisbane, Queensland, Australian Defense Minister Richard Mars said: "We hope to see Australia start to manufacture missiles in two years."
Mars said that this measure is aimed at "building the country's guided and explosive weapon industry," including the production of guided multiple rocket systems developed by the United States.
According to Austin, this project can help the United States "strengthen our cutting-edge technological advantages and consolidate our defense industry foundation.".
According to a report by Agence France Presse, the military aid to Ukraine has exposed many weak links in the arms supply chain of Western countries. After the West provided Ukraine with a large number of missiles and ammunition, its inventory is increasingly depleted. The purpose of the United States helping Australia build a domestic missile industry is to "ensure that the US military obtains a reliable pipeline when needed in the future.".
The two-day Australian US Foreign Affairs and Defense 2+2 Ministerial Consultation Meeting ended on the 29th. This year's high-level meeting is an important consultation platform between the US and Australia alliances, held alternately between the two countries. Both sides discussed issues such as Australia building nuclear submarines within the framework of the so-called "Anglo American Alliance".
Antony Blinken and Austin then went to the north of Queensland to observe the 2023 military exercise of "body protecting sabre" jointly held by the United States, Australia and other countries. An Australian military MRH-90 helicopter participating in the exercise crashed into the sea on the evening of the 28th, with 4 people missing on board, causing the exercise to be temporarily interrupted. Partial recovery began on the 29th.