TBS News In the continuing saga of territorial disputes and sovereignty surrounding Japan's decision to take state ownership of the Senkaku Islands, the sturm and drang being raised between China, Taiwan, and Japan drowned out a quick visit by Australia's Defence Minister Stephen Smith to Tokyo to meet with his Japanese counterpart, Defence Minister Morimoto, to further discuss defence relations between the two countries. That this visit has taken place a mere two weeks after Morimoto and Foreign Minister Gemba's visit to Sydney indicates that both sides are putting extra emphasis into building security ties with one another in order to offset the perceived threat to regional stability as a result of increasingly belligerent behaviour on the part of China. According to a press conference summary released by the Australian DOD, Defence Minister Smith, in his remarks, pointed to the fact that Minister Morimoto had... "drawn attention to those areas where we believe we can enhance our practical cooperation, particularly in the area of technology cooperation following on from Japan’s change to the principles which apply to the export of technology."
As this blog has stated in the past, any indication that the ADF might be able to benefit from Japan's technological expertise is a promising development in Australia-Japan security relations. Any exchange of information pertinent to technology requires a dedicated presence in the partner country in order to ensure compatability with domestic defence technology, which explains why both sides have agreed to a DOD representative being housed within Japan's Ministry of Defence. Moreover, if part of this exchange of personnel results in submarine consultations, then the plans for the next generation of submarines proposed for the RAN might receive the level of advice that would enable the submarines to be manufactured in Adelaide by domestic industries without recourse to European designs yet which would still guarantee their reliability. It would, in other words, be a major coup for the Labor Party, offset any potential criticism from domestic defence industries about the lack of investment in locally built equipment, and secure the foundations for the development of an Australian submarine fleet.
This is all conjecture, of course, however given the rapidity with which the federal government is pursuing talks with Japan, it does lead one to speculate that this may indeed be the path being tread by Minister Smith. Only time will tell if Japan becomes actively involved in the next generation of submarines plan, but if technology will become a focal point of the defence relationship for the foreseeable future, then it is a conclusion backed up by a fair degree of certainty.
As this blog has stated in the past, any indication that the ADF might be able to benefit from Japan's technological expertise is a promising development in Australia-Japan security relations. Any exchange of information pertinent to technology requires a dedicated presence in the partner country in order to ensure compatability with domestic defence technology, which explains why both sides have agreed to a DOD representative being housed within Japan's Ministry of Defence. Moreover, if part of this exchange of personnel results in submarine consultations, then the plans for the next generation of submarines proposed for the RAN might receive the level of advice that would enable the submarines to be manufactured in Adelaide by domestic industries without recourse to European designs yet which would still guarantee their reliability. It would, in other words, be a major coup for the Labor Party, offset any potential criticism from domestic defence industries about the lack of investment in locally built equipment, and secure the foundations for the development of an Australian submarine fleet.
This is all conjecture, of course, however given the rapidity with which the federal government is pursuing talks with Japan, it does lead one to speculate that this may indeed be the path being tread by Minister Smith. Only time will tell if Japan becomes actively involved in the next generation of submarines plan, but if technology will become a focal point of the defence relationship for the foreseeable future, then it is a conclusion backed up by a fair degree of certainty.
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