Modern war’s thirst for missiles and drones is on display in the Middle East. If you do not have surety of supply, you will be exposed. ⬇️
How many previews of modern warfare do we need before we accelerate our efforts to be prepared to supply our military and those of our allies and partners? Whether you call it Gulf War III or the Iran War, what is clear is that magazine depth and manufacturing capacity for missiles and drones is a critical capability. Elizabeth Buchanan has a good short read in ASPI’s The Strategist calling for Australia to rapidly adjust to a global context where the United States simply cannot supply the free world’s consumables of combat:
“Washington’s missile stock is not getting replaced at the pace and scale our global environment demands. The ledger does not look great, with a widening window of opportunity for Chinese strikes on Taiwan—a war certainly much closer to home for Canberra. Within days of Epic Fury, the limits of the US missile (and interceptor) stockpile were exposed. Indeed, the operation has revealed the true extent of a strained and quite deficient US defence-industrial base.”
This week Strategic Analysis Australia’s Michael Shoebridge calls for Australia to be ‘less needy and more capable’. A capable industrial base allows Australia increased sovereignty in our decision making and simultaneously gives scope for a greater contribution to allies and partners in our own region and beyond. It also recognises the present limits to the United State’s ability to be the arsenal of democracy for all:
“Even if the current or a future US president did want to provide support to Australia in a time of crisis, America’s defence industrial base could not be relied upon to do so. That’s because it does not have enough production capacity to meet the US military’s own needs outside peacetime. Right now, Pentagon leaders are reportedly concerned that the war with Iran, even if it is brief, will deplete stocks, leaving the US vulnerable in other theatres. Any supply to Australia’s military will only happen once the US meets its own needs, meaning this US run down matters to us and will affect us for the years the US will take to rebuild its own stocks.”
Let’s leverage our burgeoning space industry – foster start ups like Gilmour Space, Black Sky Industries and more. Let’s build a Defence industry that is more than just local offshoots of foreign Primes. Why not set a ‘Middlepower Moonshot’ – a national goal on developing interceptor missiles and anti-drone capabilities that add to the arsenal of democracy, not just join a long queue for congested US manufacturing lines.
In WWII Australia punched above our weight and added more than we took from the Arsenal of Democracy – we can do so again. Food for thought as always!
📷 of Australia’s NASAMS via Defence Connect. All articles mentioned are in the comments.