Australia is set to acquire a $7 billion stockpile of long-range missiles from the United States to strengthen its defence capabilities, with Defence Industry Minister Patrick Conroy warning that the world faced the biggest arms race since World War II.
The deal, announced by Conroy overnight in Washington DC and approved by Congress, allows Australia to acquire a suite of hundreds of SM-2 IIIC and SM-6 US-made long-range weapons for the navy that can be fired from land or ship, described by Defence Minister Richard Marles as “the most advanced air and missile defence weapons in the world”.
HMAS Sydney fires Royal Australian Navy’s first Standard Missile 6 (SM-6) near Hawaii during Exercise Pacific Dragon 2024.Credit: ADF LSIS Daniel Goodman
The SM-2 IIIC missiles have a range of 160 kilometres, while the SM-6, with a range of 370 kilometres, was already tested on Australia’s fleet last year
“Australia faces the most complex geo-strategic environment since the Second World War”, Conroy said in a statement. “Our investment in these world-leading, high-tech missiles is another example of the Albanese Government moving fast to keep Australians safe, deter any adversary, and defend Australia’s national interests in the missile age.”
At a press conference in Washington, Conroy refused to say when the missiles would be deployed on Australian warships, saying it could not be disclosed “for operational reasons”. He added that countries in the region had been expecting this announcement and would not be taken by surprise.
Conroy told the Australian Financial Review: “We live in the greatest arms race in our region since 1945 with a high degree of strategic uncertainty” and argued the missiles’ purpose was deterrence.
Earlier versions of the SM-6 have been used by Australia’s defence forces for more than a decade. Plans to purchase hundreds more of these weapons have been in progress since the Coalition received initial approval from the US State Department in 2021.
Australia is set to start producing long-range strike missiles within three years through a partnership between the federal government and Norwegian defence company Kongsberg. These modern missiles, including naval strike missiles and joint strike missiles, will have a range of more than 275 kilometres and will be manufactured near Newcastle in the NSW Hunter Valley.
Marles has said Australia needs to become a “porcupine island” fortified with enough lethal weaponry to prevent an attack from a hostile rival.
