Shapps puts British troops at the service of Australia
BRITISH military personnel could be stationed in Australia under a new defence deal struck between London and Canberra yesterday.
The agreement signed by Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary, and his counterpart Richard Marles will make it easier to share military intelligence and ensure both countries will consult each other if they come under threat.
It stops short of a full mutual defence pact, which would place a binding requirement on one side to intervene if the other was attacked.
However, it does establish a “status of forces agreement”, which makes it easier for both defence forces to operate in each other’s countries and strengthens their ability to work more closely.
“The need to act together [has] never been more pressing than it is today,” said Mr Shapps at the announcement of the deal in Canberra, adding that it was “extraordinary” that the two countries did not already have a defence co-operation treaty in place.
Mr Shapps said the step up in strategic ties between Britain and Australia reflected a shift from a post-war world to a pre-war world. “Not because we are about to go to war tomorrow, I hope, but because we need to be more prepared than ever before. Our stance needs to change,” he said, pointing to the conflict in Ukraine as being relevant to the Indo-pacific region.
The region has been increasingly on edge over China’s threats to forcibly seize Taiwan, as well as its assertive sovereignty claims in the South China Sea.
The latest deal signed between Canberra and London yesterday would make it easier for Australian sailors to train on UK nuclear submarines or for British crews to be based in Australia.