Gen. Angus Campbell also defended the conduct of the Australian military after a recent run-in with Chinese helicopters.

“Our first challenge is to strengthen our workforce, more specifically to address the shortfalls in those specific masteries and experience levels that constrain our capacity to grow,” the chief of the Royal Australian Air Force said.

Still, Jeremiah Manele signaled he may take a more balanced approach to the East-West power struggle, recently saying it’s “important to treat every and all of our partners as equals.”

Ann McDonnell, chief operating officer for Export Controls Australia Group, told Breaking Defense, “I think definitely from the Australian perspective, it really seemed like we had done everything possible that we could do in a really quick timeframe to get that certification.”

In addition, South Korea will buy four new frigates and create a new air-to-air missile; all told, the three projects will represent roughly $4 billion in investments. 

Australia has already supplied Ukraine with 120 Bushmaster vehicles, six 155mm howitzers, 56 M113 armored vehicles, 14 special operations vehicles and its signature cardboard drones.

A PLA spokesman said the Information Support Force “is a brand-new strategic arm of the PLA and a key underpinning of coordinated development and application of the network information system,” which would seem to indicate a sharp focus on networks.

Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy said Anduril’s Ghost Shark is part of the Australian military’s $5.2 billion to $7.2 billion investment in undersea uncrewed maritime systems.

Part of the shakeup includes tens of billions for nuclear-powered subs, and halting the pricey procurement of an additional F-35 fighter jet squadron.

Having regular mil-to-mil talks with China “is an important priority for us,” a senior defense official said, pointing to the PRC’s behavior in the South China Sea, as well as the importance of “peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.”

“The deliberate toning down of criticism of Chinese behavior and policy in order to stabilize the bilateral relationship makes it very difficult to have these types of conversations,” said Lavina Lee, a security studies expert.

“Japan is basically signaling both to the Philippines and the US, and beyond that, [to] Southeast Asia and others in the region, that they should look to Japan as a leader in this space,” John Blaxland, of the Australian National University, told Breaking Defense.

In an interview with Breaking Defense, Andrew Hastie discussed keeping AUKUS a three-party arrangement, the housing issue it could create and the need for a new joint defense committee.

Malcolm Davis of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute says sales will come “down to cost and capability – how much does GCAP cost in terms of both unit cost and sustainment over the life of type.”

“We’re already making good progress on the design and development of the next generation submarine in the UK, where we have more than 1,000 people working on the SSN-AUKUS program and major infrastructure investment underway,” BAE Systems CEO Charles Woodburn said.