By Rob Taylor
SYDNEY--Australia is rekindling its interest in military drones
that can roam as far as North Asia--reversing a stance that the
hardware was too expensive.
An announcement will likely be made this year, Australian
Defense Minister David Johnston said in an interview. The
conservative government plans to indicate its priorities for an
annual 25.0 billion Australian dollar (US$22.4 billion) defense
budget in its first strategic blueprint in 2015.
"Something that can leave Darwin and do a couple of laps of Sri
Lanka and come home again--that is exactly what we need," Mr.
Johnston said ahead of a speech in Sydney commemorating the
nation's submarine fleet. Darwin is on Australia's northern
coastline and home to a U.S. Marines camp and close to several oil
and gas installations.
Ministers had put the U.S. Navy's MQ-4C Triton drone near the
top of a defense shopping list last year but pressure for spending
cuts because of the country's fading mining-investment boom doused
interest.
"It's undeniable that that capacity, up at about 55,000 feet,
unarmed, is right in the place that we need to pay attention to.
It's almost a no-brainer," Mr. Johnston said. "I'm hoping in the
course of this year that I'll have something to say about
that."
Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Triton--about the size of a small
airliner--costs around $100 million and can stay aloft for more
than 30 hours.
The previous Labor government had wanted to purchase six to
seven drones and associated equipment for about A$3 billion. Under
that government, net military spending shrank to around 1.56% of
gross domestic product--its lowest since 1938.
Mr. Johnston's comments may signal that his ministry might be
spared major budget cuts, with the government prioritizing purchase
of military equipment that could help Prime Minister Tony Abbott
deliver on a promise to tighten border security and halt asylum
boat arrivals from neighboring Indonesia.
The U.S. Navy is still testing the Triton, which carries a
360-degree radar and sensors including infrared and optical
cameras, ahead of entering operational service in 2017. Unmanned
aerial vehicles are central to Northrop's international sales push,
and has been aided by the U.S. government loosening export
restrictions on platforms such as Global Hawk and Triton.
"The unmanned arena is beginning to open up for us on an
international basis," James Palmer, Northrop's chief financial
officer, said at an industry conference in New York on Thursday.
"The Australian government has been following the Triton's
development to see whether or not that capability may meet their
needs on a long-term basis."
U.S. defense contractors will have their largest-ever presence
at the Singapore Airshow next week, lured by the prospect of a
growing Asian market. According to an estimate by consultant
Avascent, the region's defense market is valued at US$350 billion,
excluding China, over the next five years.
Still, the prospect of an Asian-Pacific arms race is worrying
diplomats. In congressional testimony Wednesday, the U.S. assistant
secretary of state for the region, Daniel Russel, painted an
alarming picture of the standoff between China and Japan over a
contested group of islands in the East China Sea. noting there had
been "an unprecedented spike in risky activity" by Chinese maritime
agencies.
To Mr. Johnston, more Chinese involvement in regional military
exercises could be a way of lowering tensions between Japan and its
bigger neighbor.
Three of China's newest and most powerful naval vessels
patrolled south of Indonesia's Java Island--facing Australia's
north--for the first time last week during a rare foray into the
Indian Ocean that raised security eyebrows in Canberra, which is
itself engaged in a US$90 billion buildup of military
capability.
"I'm relaxed," Mr. Johnston said. "I think there's a lot of over
negativity about that sort of thing. Let's be open and transparent
and let's engage the neighborhood."
Growing trade tie-ups between regional countries would
inevitably work to lower tensions, Mr. Johnston said, along with a
steady widening of political forums where diplomatic sensitivities
can be discussed. Australia is already negotiating a free-trade
pact with China, its biggest trade partner, and will soon complete
another with Japan. The country secured a free-trade agreement with
South Korea in December.
"Nobody wants to see military action of any sort undermining the
economic success of the region," Mr. Johnston said. "Everybody has
skin in the game."
Doug Cameron in Chicago contributed to this article.
Write to Rob Taylor at rob.taylor@wsj.com
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