Source: Kyodo Press In a week in which the P-3C Orions of the JMSDF and Gulfstream aircraft of Japan’s Coast Guard bid farewell to RAAF Base Pearce (J) following the Australian government’s announcement that the search for MH370 would shift to underwater scans, the probability of closer Australia-Japan defence cooperation grew following a meeting held on Monday in Perth between Japanese Defence Minister Onodera and Australian Defence Minister Johnston. Although the press release from Senator Johnston didn’t give too much away as to what was discussed during the meeting, it clearly noted that marine hydrodynamic technology was ‘likely’ to be an item on the agenda of the Australia-Japan 2+2 meeting in June (an event which is also ‘likely’ to become an annual occurrence). While this development received some attention in the Japanese media (namely here and here ), it was lost on Australia’s domestic media, who were otherwise preoccupied with questions on income taxation and the federal budget, corruption in NSW politics, or in defence terms, the decision to purchase another 58 F-35 JSF aircraft (a controversial move in itself given the rhetoric concerning Australia’s parlous economic state).
One issue that Australia might be considering at present is the probability of Japanese cooperation in designing the propulsion and generator systems that will be used by the next generation of Australian submarines. With a white paper on defence due from the government by April next year (this could, of course, be delayed by questions concerning affordability and Australia’s strategic policy, which does require more in depth analysis than has been evident in previous white papers), the Coalition government in Australia must make a firm decision on what options will be adopted by Australia in order to ensure that it still retains a submarine capability for the next 30 years. Given Japan has relaxed its position in relation to the joint development of defence technology, the Coalition is probably looking for a solid commitment from Japan to contribute to the planning of Australia’s submarines.
This is unlikely to be a problem for Japan’s own Coalition government, with the LDP and New Komeito in agreement on the need for a revision of the three principles concerning the transfer of defence material (J), the scope of which would cover submarine propulsion systems. The involvement of Japan in defence technology development with Australia is also unlikely to raise many concerns within Japan itself, so long as Japan believes Australia to be a stable, responsible partner that is unlikely to upset regional stability in pursuit of unilateral objectives (prevention of weapons technology being used by a third party or rogue state is a fundamental part of the revision, which itself means that Japan will only work with advanced nations on defence technology development. This is already evident in Japan’s defence agreements with the UK and France in addition to its long-standing agreement with the US).
One issue that Australia might be considering at present is the probability of Japanese cooperation in designing the propulsion and generator systems that will be used by the next generation of Australian submarines. With a white paper on defence due from the government by April next year (this could, of course, be delayed by questions concerning affordability and Australia’s strategic policy, which does require more in depth analysis than has been evident in previous white papers), the Coalition government in Australia must make a firm decision on what options will be adopted by Australia in order to ensure that it still retains a submarine capability for the next 30 years. Given Japan has relaxed its position in relation to the joint development of defence technology, the Coalition is probably looking for a solid commitment from Japan to contribute to the planning of Australia’s submarines.
This is unlikely to be a problem for Japan’s own Coalition government, with the LDP and New Komeito in agreement on the need for a revision of the three principles concerning the transfer of defence material (J), the scope of which would cover submarine propulsion systems. The involvement of Japan in defence technology development with Australia is also unlikely to raise many concerns within Japan itself, so long as Japan believes Australia to be a stable, responsible partner that is unlikely to upset regional stability in pursuit of unilateral objectives (prevention of weapons technology being used by a third party or rogue state is a fundamental part of the revision, which itself means that Japan will only work with advanced nations on defence technology development. This is already evident in Japan’s defence agreements with the UK and France in addition to its long-standing agreement with the US).
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