Every new year presents new opportunities and challenges. General
Sir Jim Hockenhull met with General Angus Campbell, Australia’s
Chief of the Defence Force, to discuss how to maximise the
UK-Australia relationship to ensure we remain ahead of our
adversaries, including through our growing cyber partnership, the
opportunities provided by AUKUS and the sharing of lessons and
experiences.
Australia remains one of the UK’s closest partners and in an
increasingly dangerous world, collaboration and cooperation with
our international partners has never been more important. Over
the past three months, General Sir Jim Hockenhull has engaged in
regular dialogue with senior Australian Defence officials,
including visits from Vice Admiral , Australia’s Vice Chief of
Defence Force, and Tom Hamilton, Deputy Secretary for Defence
Strategic Review Implementation.
As the battlefield is constantly changing due to the emergence of
new threats and technologies, the two Generals discussed in
detail the cyber partnership between the UK and Australia, with
General Sir Jim Hockenhull also speaking of Strategic Command’s
ongoing efforts to harness digital lessons from the recent
Australian Defence Strategic Review. Having a strong digital
defence will prove to be crucial over the coming years,
especially with the advent of AI and our adversaries’ interest in
unconventional means of disruption, such as ransomware
attacks.
Another key point of discussion was how the conflicts of today
can help us predict and prepare for tomorrow’s battles.
Asymmetric warfare is commonly employed by many our adversaries,
with both the UK and Australia agreeing that innovation and
engagement with future technology will be critical to defending
the interests of Europe and the Pacific. The importance of
Britain’s presence in the Indo-Pacific was also discussed,
alongside the value of our partnership in containing emerging
threats from both the European and Pacific theatre.
