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The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the Military Organisation responsible for the defence of Australia . It consists of the Royal Australian Navy , Australian Army , Royal Australian Air Force and a number of 'tri-service' units. During the first decades of the 20th century, the Australian Government established three separate armed services. Each service had an independent Chain Of Command . In 1976, the government made a strategic change and established the ADF to place the services under a single headquarters. Over time, the degree of integration has increased and tri-service headquarters, logistics and training institutions have supplanted many single-service establishments. The ADF is technologically sophisticated but relatively small. Although the ADF's 51,000 full-time active-duty personnel and 19,400 Reservists make it the largest military in Oceania , it is much smaller than most Asia n militaries. Nonetheless, the ADF is able to deploy forces in multiple locations outside Australia. ROLE Legal standing The ADF's legal standing draws on the Executive Government sections of the Australian Constitution . Section 51(vi) gives the Commonwealth Government the power to make laws regarding Australia's defence and defence forces. Section 114 of the Constitution prevents the States from raising armed forces without the permission of the Commonwealth and Section 119 gives the Commonwealth responsibility for defending Australia from invasion and sets out the conditions under which the government can deploy the defence force domestically.Raspal Khosa (2004). ''Australian Defence Almanac 2004-05.'' Australian Strategic Policy Institute , Canberra. Page 4 and Australian Attorney-General's Department Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act . Section 68 of the Constitution sets out the ADF's command arrangements. The Section states that "the command in chief of the naval and military forces of the Commonwealth is vested in the Governor-General as the Queen's representative." The Constitution does not mention the Air Force as aircraft had not been invented when it was written. Subsequent legislation places the Air Force under the same command structure. In practice, the Governor General does not play an active part in the ADF's command structure and the elected Australian Government controls the ADF. The Minister For Defence and several subordinate ministers Exercise This Control . The Minister acts on most matters alone, though the National Security Committee of Cabinet considers important matters. The Minister then advises the Governor-General who acts as advised in the normal form of Executive Government .Khosa (2004). Page 4. Current priorities In 2000, the Australian Government developed a White Paper to guide all aspects of its defence policy. The White Paper sets out and explains the ADF's priorities. The paper states that the ADF has three priorities. The first of these priorities is to maintain the capability to defend Australian territory from any credible attack, without relying on help from the combat forces of any other country. The second priority is to contribute to the security of Australia's immediate neighbourhood through working with neighbouring countries and participating in United Nations -sanctioned Peacekeeping operations. The third priority for the ADF is to contribute to international coalitions of forces outside of Australia's immediate neighbourhood where Australian interests are engaged. The ADF is also responsible for contributing to coastal surveillance and responding to emergencies, including natural disasters.Australian Department of Defence (2000). ''Defence 2000 - Our Future Defence Force'' . Australian Department of Defence, Canberra. Pages 46-53. ''Australia's National Security. A Defence Update 2007'' is the most recent Australian Government review of its national security policies. This document states that "because of the increasing complexity of the international security environment, Australia must prepare for a range of possible events, both close to home and further afield, with lessened forewarning of crises.".Australian Department of Defence (2007a). '' Australia's National Security. A Defence Update 2007 ''. Australian Department of Defence, Canberra. Page 10. To meet these events it is argued that the ADF must be capable of acting independently within Australia's region to deter or defeat threats to Australia's territory and interests. This includes possessing a capability to conduct military operations at short notice.Australian Department of Defence (2007a). Pages 26-27. The document also states that the ADF must be able to make a significant contribution to international coalition operations outside Australia's region. The ADF is not expected to be capable of acting independently outside this region, however.Australian Department of Defence (2007a). Pages 27-29. HISTORY Main Articles: Military History Of Australia , History Of The Royal Australian Navy , History Of The Australian Army , History Of The Royal Australian Air Force Formation of the Australian Defence Force without replacement in 1982 marked a shift away from the policy of 'forward defence'.David Horner (2001). ''Making the Australian Defence Force''. Oxford University Press, Melbourne. Page 55.]] Australia has maintained military forces since Federation As A Nation in January 1901. Upon Federation, the Australian Government established the Australian Army and Commonwealth Naval Force. In 1909, the Government established the Royal Australian Navy , which absorbed the Commonwealth Naval Force. The Army established the Australian Flying Corps in 1912 although this separated to form the Royal Australian Air Force in 1921. The services were not linked by a single chain of command, as they each reported to their own separate Minister and had separate administrative arrangements. The three services saw action around the world during World War I and World War II . The importance of 'joint' Warfare was made clear to the Australian Military during World War II when Australian naval, ground and air units frequently served as part of single commands. Following the war, several senior officers lobbied for the appointment of a Commander In Chief of the three services. The government rejected this proposal and the three services remained fully independent. Horner (2001). Page 42. The absence of a central authority resulted in poor coordination between the services with each service organising and operating on the basis of a different Military Doctrine .Horner (2001). Page 44. The need for an integrated command structured received more emphasis during The Australian Military's Experiences In The Vietnam War .Horner (2001). Page 44. In 1973, the Secretary of the Department Of Defence , Arthur Tange , submitted a report to the Government that recommended the unification of the separate departments supporting each service into a single Department of Defence and the creation of the post of Chief of the Defence Force Staff. The government accepted these recommendations and the Australian Defence Force was established on 9 February 1976.Horner (2001). Page 47. Defence of Australia era Until the 1970s, Australia's military strategy centred on the concept of 'forward defence', in which the role of the Australian military was to cooperate with Allied forces to counter threats in Australia's region. In 1969, when the United States began the .Horner (2001). Page 72. At this time, the ADF had no military units on operational deployment outside Australia. In 1987, the ADF made its first operational deployment as part of Operation Morris Dance , in which several warships and a rifle company deployed to the waters off Fiji in response to the 1987 Fijian Coups D'état . While broadly successful, this deployment highlighted the need for the ADF to improve its capability to rapidly respond to unforeseen events.Horner (2001). Pages 225-227. Since the late 1980s, the Government has increasingly called upon the ADF to contribute forces to peacekeeping missions around the world. While most of these deployments involved only small numbers of specialists, several led to the deployment of hundreds of personnel. Large peacekeeping deployments were made to Namibia in early 1989, Cambodia between 1992 and 1993, Somalia In 1993 , Rwanda between 1994 and 1995 and Bougainville in 1994 and from 1997 onwards.Horner (2001). Pages 228-255. The Australian Contribution To The 1991 Gulf War was the first time Australian personnel were deployed to an active war zone since the establishment of the ADF. Although the warships and Clearance Diving Team deployed to the Persian Gulf did not see combat, the deployment tested the ADF's capabilities and command structure. Following the war the Navy regularly deployed a Frigate To The Persian Gulf Or Red Sea to enforce the Trade Sanctions Imposed On Iraq .Horner (2001). Pages 231-237. East Timor and after in the Middle East in late 2003. These aircraft support ADF operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.]] In 1996, John Howard led the Liberal Party 's election campaign and became Prime Minister. Subsequently, there were significant reforms to the ADF's force structure and role. The new government's defence strategy placed less emphasis on defending Australia from direct attack and greater emphasis on working in cooperation with regional states and Australia's Allies to manage potential security threats.Australian Army (2002). ''The Fundamentals of Land Warfare'' . Annex B. In line with this new focus, the ADF's force structure changed in an attempt to increase the proportion of combat units to support units and to improve the ADF's combat effectiveness. The ADF's experiences during the Defence expenditure by 3% per year.Mark Thomson (2005b). 'Easier Said Than Done: At the Six-year Mark in Remaking the ADF' in ''Defender'', Winter 2005. Page 11. In 2003 and 2005, the ''Defence Updates'' emphasised this focus on expeditionary operations and the result has been an expansion and modernisation of the ADF.Mark Thomson (2006a). Defence Budget 2006/07: 'Planning on Hope or Pessimism' in ''Defender'', Winter 2006. Pages 7-8. Since 2000, the ADF's expanded force structure and deployment capabilities have been put to the test on a number of occasions. Following the (East Timor) in Operation Astute following unrest between elements of the Timor Leste Defense Force . Current operations See Also: Current Australian Defence Force deployments In July 2007 around 3850 Australian Defence Force personnel were deployed on overseas operations. An additional 450 personnel were also deployed on domestic maritime security tasks.Australian Department of Defence. Global Operations . Accessed 4 July 2007. While these deployments have placed pressure on some elements of the military, and particularly the Army, the ADF is not currently 'overstretched'.Mark Thomson (2007). ''The final straw: Are our defence forces overstretched?'' Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Canberra. Page 11. |
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