Australia says $4.7 billion long-range missile deal to boost deterrence By Reuters

SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia said on Tuesday it would strengthen its air and missile defenses in a A$7 billion ($4.7 billion) deal with the United States to acquire SM-2 IIIC and SM-6 long-range missiles for the navy.

The Australian Navy test-fired the Raytheon (NYSE: ) SM-6 missile from a ship in August during exercises with the United States in Hawaii.

The SM-6 is the most advanced naval air defense missile in the US arsenal, including cruise missiles, and has been tested against ships and surface-to-surface targets, as well as in air-to-air situations.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said the SM-6 will be deployed on all of the navy's Hobart-class destroyers and future Hunter-class destroyers.

“The Standard Missile-6 and the Standard Missile 2 Block IIIC will allow our Navy to attack long-range maritime, land and air targets, and provide an anti-missile defense capability, increasing the ADF's ability to protect Australians and their interests,” he said in a statement.

Australia said last year it would prioritize long-range precision strike capabilities and strengthen its northern bases in the country's biggest defense shake-up since the Second World War, after a review found that intense competition between the US and China was defining the region, and that. The greatest competition for power was “the power of conflict”.

Australia is improving deterrence by rapidly increasing the Navy's long-range strike capabilities, it said in a statement on Tuesday. Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy said Australia was facing “the most complex geo-strategic environment since the Second World War”.

Australia and the United States are working to develop bases in the north and west of Australia, which are closer to potential territories with China in the South China Sea than the Australian capital Canberra.

($1 = 1.5022 Australian dollars)