Enhancing Defense Industrial Cooperation Between Australia and the United States

Abstract

The alliance between Australia and the United States is becoming increasingly salient as threats have evolved and challenges have multiplied. In the Indo-Pacific region, the primary threat to regional stability is China, but Australia and the United States are well postured to work in partnership against global threats. Defense industrial cooperation is a distinct interest of both partners, with public statements from leaders culminating in the AUKUS agreement. Drawing on desk research, interviews with approximately 30 business organizations in the both nations and with government personnel, and outputs of two discussion workshops, this paper gives an overview of the goals of the bilateral Australia-U.S. partnership with a focus on strengthening the defense industrial ecosystem of emerging technology acquisition between Australia and the United States. The strategic imperative of enhancing defense industrial cooperation between Australia and the United States requires a response rooted in a clear understanding of the specific challenges of this bilateral relationship combined with a broader mastery of the strategic imperatives of both countries, the acquisition process, and the numerous obstacles to any form of defense industrial cooperation. Simple solutions and single policy changes (i.e., “fix ITAR”) are not going to yield the desired results. A longer-term plan for change management—with a focus on sharing the strategic vision, providing resources and training, continually looking to identify and address barriers, and highlighting wins, can enhance cooperation outcomes. A plan to measure and track cooperative activities will provide a useful metric that can be used to assess whether policy changes are having an effect.