Australian Defence Force Posture Review
On 22 June 2011 Minister for Defence Stephen Smith announced a Force Posture Review to assess whether the Australian Defence Force (ADF) is best-positioned geographically to meet Australia’s modern and future strategic and security challenges.
The Department of Defence will undertake the Review with oversight by an expert panel made up of two renowned Australian national security specialists: Dr Allan Hawke and Mr Ric Smith.
The Review will help provide a strategic context for the next Defence White Paper scheduled for the first quarter of 2014, and will address the range of present and emerging global, regional and national strategic and security factors which require careful consideration for the future, including:
- the rise of the Asia-Pacific as a region of global strategic significance;
- the rise of the Indian Ocean rim as a region of global strategic significance;
- the growth of military power projection capabilities of countries in the Asia Pacific;
- the growing need for the provision of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief following extreme events in the Asia Pacific region; and
- energy security and security issues associated with expanding offshore resource exploitation in our North West and Northern approaches.
It will build on the strategic and capability judgements contained in the Defence White Paper 2009 Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030, and consider the implications for Force Posture from the array of emerging strategic and security influences.
Defence’s assessment of basing requirements and the possible resulting changes to Defence’s estate over the next 25 years will also inform the Review.
Finally, it will complement the work currently underway with the United States on the ongoing United States Global Force Posture Review by the joint Australian-United States working group.
The panel undertaking the Force Posture Review will provide a progress report to the Minister for Defence before the end of 2011, with a final report provided to Government during the first quarter of 2012.
Related links
Maps and Information
PDF documents require Adobe Reader for viewing. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, you can download it from the Adobe web site.
- Map 1 [PDF-413 KB]
- Map 2 [PDF-431 KB]
- Map 3 [PDF-895 KB]
- Australian Defence Force Major Bases and Disposition In Australia [PDF-21 KB]
- Australian Defence Force Current Operations [PDF-28 KB]
- Australian Defence Force Major Exercises [PDF-20 KB]
- Australian and United States Joint Working Group on the US Global Force Posture Review [PDF-26 KB]
Defence White Paper 2009 Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030
Media page – Minister for Defence Stephen Smith