John Gardner’s Post

Oh - we must do better than this !! A state of affairs has been revealed during the RIMPAC Exercise in Hawaii which is highlighting Australia's apparent insufficient military preparedness. In fact Australia's Defense Force sent only 320 personnel, one warship, and one P-8A maritime reconnaissance aircraft to RIMPAC 2024, falling significantly short of the nation's previous contributions accounting for only a fraction of the total assets involved in the exercise. This lackluster participation in the RIMPAC Exercise unfortunately contradicts the current Australian Governments purported shift towards focusing on its immediate region, revealing critical gaps in military readiness. Let's pick up our game as the Australian Defence Industry is here to help - in fact Envirofluid was in Hawaii last month supporting AUKUS interests. #USDefense #Navy #RAAF #AUKUS #Austrade

The new UK Labour government has formally launched a major review of its defense posture and policy which it says will take a “clear-eyed” approach to international threats, including Russia, reboot “hollowed out” armed forces and end wasteful acquisitions. The much anticipated Strategic Defence Review (SDR) was commissioned by Labour leader Kier Starmer today and will be overseen by John Healey, UK defence secretary. London said in a statement that the review will be completed “in the first half of 2025” and work is to begin right away, “in recognition of the urgency of the threats” it faces. Among the challenges to consider: Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East and the rise of China in the Indo-Pacific.

📣 Yesterday, the Australian government released its 2024 National Defence Strategy and 2024 Integrated Investment Program. In an op-ed in The Australian today, Security & Defence PLuS Executive Director Dr Ian Langford, PhD writes that the strategy "ultimately fulfils its commitments first articulated in [Australia's] 2024 Defence Strategic Review. Whether capabilities can be delivered fast enough, relative to a changing security environment, remains to be seen." In order to meet the challenge, Ian notes, it will be necessary "to institutionalise defence and national security as a truly strategic endeavor" for which "separating AUKUS pillar I (submarines) from the Defence budget would be a start." On AUKUS pillar II (emerging technology), "[o]vercoming bureaucracy inside and outside the government will be key" to achieving "the kind of asymmetric advantage fundamental to [Deputy Prime Minister Richard] Marles's strategy of denial." Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/g4thY_y5 #AUKUS #Australia #DefenceStrategy #DefenceInvestments

Finnish people remain confident in Finland’s defence capability and willing to defend their country; strong support for Finland’s memberships in the EU and NATO, and for helping Ukraine 🇺🇦. On the eve of Finland’s 107th Independence Day 🇫🇮, results of an annual poll highlight Finnish resilience and stability: 🔒 86% are confident in Finland’s defence capability against various military threats. 💪🏻 Four out of five support the current conscription model in Finland, with 78% of those interviewed willing to defend their country in any scenario. 🔗 82% view Finland’s NATO membership positively. Finns continue to express strong support for international cooperation in NATO, EU, UN and beyond. 🫶🏻 Some 90% support financial and military assistance to Ukraine, as well as maintaining or increasing sanctions against Russia. Finland is one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters with 1.2% of GDP allocated to support since February 2022. 🔍 Read more about Finns’ opinions on foreign and security policy, national defence and security: https://lnkd.in/dSwaj9Zf. Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland | Nyberg Sirpa | Puolustusministeriö - Försvarsministeriet - Ministry of Defence of Finland | Maanpuolustustiedotuksen suunnittelukunta MTS - Planeringskommissionen för försvarsinformation PFI | Embassy of Finland in Australia | Ryan Hemingway

Where to draw the line when considering national security vs. EU security vs NATO security? For sure it's not one happy family -thinking that's currently prevailing... "The report also underlines the need to align EU and NATO capacity building efforts to avoid duplication, and to harmonise strategic planning." #nationalsecurity #eu #nato #cooperation #totalsecurity #defence #dualuse #policy

Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the European Commission "What makes this sector unique among all industries is that governments are the only buyers. In 2022, defence investment by EU Member States amounted to €58 billion, almost 4 times less than in the US. Defence policy remains an exclusive competence of EU Member States and they are the master of their armies. If we want to boost the European defence industry, working with Member States is therefore crucial. We need to invest more, better, together, and European. We have already said that many times before, but this time, we need to do it. EU Member States are indeed still not coordinating and pooling their defence planning and procurement enough. In 2021, European collaborative procurement was only at 18%, despite the benchmark of 35% set by Member States themselves back in 2007. The fragmentation of the European defence industry is related to the political fragmentation of the continent. In Europe, we do not have a Pentagon that concentrates demand and drives the industry. We have to overcome this fragmentation through more cooperation, incentivising more joint procurement of defence capabilities and projects of common European interest."

CANADA (Mr. Trudeau) please note: if we want to be taken seriously in NATO we need to in the words of UK PM Rishi Sunak: Modernise our Armed Forces: Radically reform defence procurement and create a new Defence Innovation Agency to ensure the UK is at the cutting edge of modern warfare technology, with at least 5% of the defence budget to be committed to R&D.

📯 ICYMI - UK Government launches much anticipated fresh strategic defence review, https://lnkd.in/esuhgAVd 📯 Commissioned by the Prime Minister, it will be overseen by John Healey as the new Defence Secretary - and (in an innovative move) headed by a former Defence Secretary, George Robertson. 📯 "Submissions will be invited until the end of September from serving and retired members of the Armed Forces, the defence industry, the general public, academics, Parliament, and our closest allies and partners, especially in NATO", in other words, this sets out to be the most inclusive and comprehensive defence review since Lord Robertson was last involved in one, back in 1998. 📯 In somewhat broad brush terms, the SDR will seek to: ➡ Put personnel across defence at the heart of future defence work. ➡ Ensure that the UK continues to lead in NATO. ➡ Strengthen UK homeland security. ➡ Bolster Ukraine in its fight against Russian aggression.  ➡ Modernise and maintain the nuclear deterrent. ➡ Adapt military services and equipment programmes to meet requirements. ➡ Help drive the guiding principle of One Defence (that is all parts of the Ministry of Defence, industry partners and international allies pulling in the same direction). 📓 A seasoned observer of these Reviews (since as a teen I complained about Nott's Navy Cuts), I look forward to following this new one. It will be its (sustainable) outcome and output that of course really matter. #strategicdefencereview #mod #nato #defencepolicy #politics #geopolitics #defenceindustrialbase #collaboration #newgovernment #russianukrainewar #governmentspending

Civilians must be ready to fight because Britain’s military is so small, warn peers. The House of Lords International Relations and Defence Committee has published its report. Damning report says evidence suggests size of Army is inadequate and urges country to think of itself as ‘a nation under genuine threat’ Commenting on the report, Lord de Mauley, who chairs the Committee said: “We welcome the Government’s launch of the Strategic Defence Review, which presents an opportunity to set clear priorities and develop a holistic model for strengthening UK Defence that mobilises all elements of national power, leveraging technology, industry, Reserves, allies, and wider society. Given the perilous threat environment, the Government must not miss this chance and must commit to spending more on defence and spending better.” Key conclusions and recommendations of the report include: Defence industry preparedness: The UK’s defence industry is unprepared for sustained conflict due to years of underinvestment. There is a lack of trust between government and the defence industry, which needs to be addressed through clearer, long-term Government commitments to allow industry to take risks and increase output. Innovation: Non-traditional defence suppliers, such as start-ups, SMEs and tech companies, are key to innovation and accelerating the pace of delivery, but they face barriers in accessing the defence market. The Government needs to facilitate a ‘broad church’ of industry engagement, beyond the traditional defence sector. #AUKUS Michael Sharpe See https://lnkd.in/gEGrChTq