The Australian Defense Force (ADF) will allow recruits from foreign countries, including the UK, to help grow its ranks.
Australia has been grappling with a recruitment shortfall as it seeks to bolster its armed forces to deal with what it says is a growing regional threat.
From July, New Zealand nationals who are permanent residents of Australia can apply to join, and from next year, applications will be expanded to recruits from the UK and other countries such as the United States and Canada.
Defense Secretary Richard Marrs said the changes to qualification requirements are “critical to meeting the nation’s security challenges over the next decade and beyond.”
He said Australia and New Zealand had developed a long-standing “Anzac bond”, pointing to the two countries’ history of fighting side by side at Gallipoli in the First World War.
In recent years, Australia has sought to strengthen ties with the United Kingdom and the United States, and in 2021 signed the Orcus Agreement – a far-reaching defense and security alliance aimed at countering China’s military expansion in the Indo-Pacific region .
Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and New Zealand also work closely together under the “Five Eyes” alliance to share intelligence.
The focus is on recruiting personnel from those countries, but Defense Personnel Secretary Matt Keough said that starting Jan. 1, “any” eligible permanent resident can apply.
Canberra has repeatedly expressed growing concern about Beijing’s assertiveness, and the Australian Defense Force strategic review released last year identified “developing and retaining highly skilled defense personnel” as a key response to the problem.
The previous government announced AU$38 billion (£19.8 billion; US$25.4) in 2020 to increase the number of military police personnel by 30% over 20 years.
But Mr Keogh said Australia’s low unemployment rate made recruiting staff “very difficult” – with recent government figures estimating the ADF already had a shortage of about 4,400 people.
While Australia has a history of accepting minor military redeployments from a handful of allies, the new eligibility rules are intended to significantly widen the pool of potential recruits.
In addition to meeting the Australian Defense Force’s entry standards and security requirements, those wishing to join must also be Australian permanent residents for more than one year and must not have served in a foreign military within the past two years.
Mr Keogh said they must also be eligible for Australian citizenship – which they will be granted and “expected” to do after 90 days of service.
The opposition foreign affairs spokesman said they had no objection to the plan but that the government’s defense strategy was damaging confidence and morale in the defense forces.
“Ideally we would like to see Australians wearing Australian colors,” Simon Birmingham told Sky News Australia.
