Australia’s Archipelagic Deterrence

Abstract Australia’s 2023 Defence Strategic Review has inaugurated a new era of ‘archipelagic deterrence’. Despite Australia’s often forward-leaning rhetoric, it has turned away from making significant military contributions in Northeast Asia or globally, and instead is building a secure bastion across its northern approaches while inviting the United States to radically expand its military presence on Australian soil. The aim of archipelagic deterrence is to deter and deny China from a coercive maritime presence in the zone from the eastern Indian Ocean, through maritime Southeast Asia and into the South Pacific. It is hoped this will help stabilise the regional balance of power. This new model of alliance cooperation better reflects enduring differences in size and interests between Washington and Canberra, and should provide a stable and effective foundation for the United States’ presence and activity in the southern Indo-Pacific.