Australia unveils ‘massive’ increase in defence spending

Operation FIJI ASSIST 2016. Source: Australian DOD

SYDNEY: Australia unveiled a massive new investment in the nation’s defence capabilities on Thursday to address what Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called “high stakes” and “momentous times” in Asia.

Citing increased defence spending around the region and potential flashpoints in the South China Sea and the Korean peninsula, he said the government was committed to combating the most challenging strategic environment “we have faced in peacetime”.

“These are momentous times. The stakes are high. And as the opportunities expand, so does the cost of losing them,” Turnbull said in launching a new Defence White Paper in Canberra.

Cubic Wins $18 Million Contract for Australian Defence Simulation and Training Centre Simulation

SAN DIEGO –  Cubic Global Defense (CGD), a business unit of Cubic Corporation recently announced the selection of Cubic Defence Australia as the primary contractor to provide a managed workforce solution for the Australian Defence Simulation and Training Centre (ADSTC) Simulation Support Services (SSS). The four-year contract is valued at $18 million with options for extension. ADSTC and the contracted services are based in Canberra, Australia, but will be distributed throughout the country and the Pacific to coalition partners.

Myanmar Refugee First to Accept Cambodia Resettlement

Australian Immigration Minister Scott Morrison, front left, signs a document together
with Cambodian Interior Minister Sar Kheng, front right, during a ceremony for a controversial
deal to resettle refugees in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Sept. 26, 2014 (Source: Voice of America)

April 23 -- Cambodia said it is reviewing the case of the first refugee at the Nauru detention center to volunteer for a controversial Australian resettlement plan.

Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak Thursday told the VOA Khmer service the first refugee to agree to resettle in Cambodia is an ethnic Rohingya who had fled Myanmar hoping to resettle in Australia.

Brunei and Australia in Exercise Penguin 16/15

Lieutenant Colonel (L) Pengiran Mohammad bin Pengiran Haji Damit, Fleet Commander of Royal Brunei Navy; Lieutenant Commander Philip Draper, Commander Officer of HMAS Armidale; RAN Wing Com-mander Michael Cawley, Deputy Defence Advisor to Singapore and Brunei Darussalam as well as RBN officials in a group photo (Source: Borneo Bulletin)

MILITARY ties between Brunei Darussalam and Australia are set to be enhanced following the launch of Exercise Penguin 16/15, a bilateral exercise conducted biennially between Royal Brunei Navy (RBN) and Royal Australian Navy (RAN).

Lieutenant Colonel (L) Pengiran Mohammad bin Pengiran Haji Damit, Fleet Commander of the Royal Brunei Navy, said the objective of the exercise was to strengthen the relationship between both parties through operational and naval practices.

Northrop Grumman to Start Production on Republic of Korea Global Hawks

RQ-4 Global Hawk (Source: Northrop Grumman)

Northrop Grumman Corporation recently announced that the company will begin production of four RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) for the Republic of Korea's Air Force. The systems will provide valuable wide-area intelligence gathering capabilities to military commanders so they can make more informed decisions.

Under a contract awarded Dec. 16, the company will work closely with the US Air Force to deliver the systems starting in 2018.