How Close Is Too Close? Rethinking Australia’s Military Ties to the U.S.

As strategic competition intensifies in the Indo-Pacific, Australia is being forced to rethink long-held assumptions about its alliance with the United States.

In this panel hosted by the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS), three experts—Doug Abdiel, Lt Col in the US Marine Corps; Sam Roggeveen, Director of the International Security Program at the Lowy Institute; and Aidan Morrison, Director of Energy and Defence at CIS—debate what Australia’s defence future should look like in a rapidly changing world.

Is Australia relying too much on the U.S. for its defence?

Are we spending too much on submarines and neglecting other critical needs?

Could U.S.-style weapons drag us into wars we don’t want to fight?

Are we building the right kind of defence force to protect Australia—not just to support the U.S.?