By Kirsty Needham
SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia will not commit troops in advance to any conflict, Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said on Sunday, responding to a report that the Pentagon has pressed its ally to clarify what role it would play if the U.S. and China went to war over Taiwan.
Australia prioritises its sovereignty and “we don’t discuss hypotheticals”, Conroy said in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
“The decision to commit Australian troops to a conflict will be made by the government of the day, not in advance but by the government of the day,” he said.
The Financial Times reported on Saturday that Elbridge Colby, the U.S. under-secretary of defence for policy, has been pushing Australian and Japanese defence officials on what they would do in a Taiwan conflict, although the U.S. does not offer a blank cheque guarantee to defend Taiwan.
Colby posted on X that the Department of Defense is implementing President Donald Trump’s “America First” agenda of restoring deterrence, which includes “urging allies to step up their defense spending and other efforts related to our collective defense”.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own and has not ruled out the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. Taiwan President Lai Ching-te rejects China’s sovereignty claims, saying only Taiwan’s people can decide their future.
Australia’s largest war-fighting exercise with the United States, involving 30,000 troops from 19 countries, opens on Sunday on Sydney Harbour.
Conroy said Australia was concerned about China’s military buildup of nuclear and conventional forces, and wants a balanced Indo-Pacific region where no country dominates.
“China is seeking to secure a military base in the region and we are working very hard to be the primary security partner of choice for the region because we don’t think that’s a particularly optimal thing for Australia,” he said, referring to the Pacific Islands.
Security is expected to be on the agenda when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meets China’s leaders this week. He arrived in Shanghai on Saturday for a six-day visit.
The Talisman Sabre exercise will span 6,500 km (4,000 miles), from Australia’s Indian Ocean territory of Christmas Island to the Coral Sea on Australia’s east coast.
Conroy said it was possible China’s navy would be watching the exercise to collect information, as it had done in the past.
The United States is Australia’s major security ally. Although Australia does not permit foreign bases, the U.S. military is expanding its rotational presence and fuel stores on Australian bases, which from 2027 will have U.S. Virginia submarines at port in Western Australia.
These would play a key role in supporting U.S. forces in any conflict over Taiwan, analysts say.
(Reporting by Kirsty Needham in Sydney; Editing by William Mallard)
