The heartland of Australia's defence policies

Abstract

This paper looks at the conceptual framework that Australian governments have used over the past thirty years or so to give direction on defence policy and priorities. The paper examines four separate but strongly interrelated notions: self-reliance, levels of conflict and warning time; limitations to Australia's military resources and influence; and regional as opposed to distant operations. It observes that the treatment of these four themes show a high level of consistency, in spite of the several changes of government in Canberra over the period, and the extensive changes in the external security environment. The paper speculates on the continuing relevance of this conceptual framework. It concludes that, while change should not be ruled out, any more-radical change that might be contemplated would need to meet the challenge of at least matching the current conceptual framework for overall cogency and coherence.