00:01Mark Hammond comes into this role with 40 years or so in the Navy, chiefly as a submariner
00:08during this time and most recently serving as the Chief of Navy.
00:11So someone who's been around the top of the Australian Defence Force for quite a few years
00:16now, stepping into this new role as the Chief of the Defence Force from July.
00:21He's served on Collins-class submarines throughout his career.
00:25He's also spent a significant period of time in his career working in the United States as well.
00:30He's a very strong defender of the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine program and that important alliance
00:37with both the United States and the United Kingdom as well, and has previously defended
00:41it arguing Australians should have confidence in Australia's capability and capacity to
00:46produce complex nuclear-powered submarines like the AUKUS-class submarine that will come down
00:52the track.
00:52So he is, I suppose, a fairly conventional choice for someone in this role.
00:57There's a bit of continuity having someone from the Navy in the top job as well, given
01:01the current CDF.
01:03Admiral David Johnston is, of course, Navy as well.
01:06He's also someone who is seen as quite close to the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister
01:10as well.
01:11Here is the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, making this announcement a little earlier today.
01:15Vice Admiral Hammond has had a distinguished career, spanning 40 years in the Royal Australian
01:23Navy, serving in frigates and extensively in and later commanding submarines and the Australian
01:31fleet.
01:35Vice Admiral Hammond will continue to bring valuable insight to the role of Chief of the Defence Force,
01:43including, of course, to Australia's acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines
01:49through AUKUS.
01:50The Prime Minister speaking there, and Tom, the incoming CDF comes in at a very interesting
01:56time for Defence, to say the least.
01:58Yeah, look, there were some really interesting comments at this press conference, Joe, from
02:02Mark Hammond, about Australia's military capability as it stands right now, of course.
02:07There's been these sort of lingering questions for a few weeks about Australia's capacity to
02:11provide assistance to the United States and others in the Strait of Hormuz in securing
02:16and reopening that strait if called upon.
02:19And those questions have largely circled around two things.
02:23One is strategic priorities.
02:24Should Australia be sending a warship to the Middle East right now, or should our focus
02:28be closer to home, particularly in the Indo-Pacific, but also capability?
02:33Does Australia have a warship to spare, to send to the Strait of Hormuz or the Persian Gulf
02:38more broadly, if called upon?
02:40And Mark Hammond was very clear at this press conference that he argues Australia does.
02:44He says Australia has 10 surface combatants right now.
02:47Eight of them are in the water.
02:48It should be pointed that of those 10, seven are fairly ageing ANZAC-class frigates, but there
02:53are three much more capable Hobart-class air warfare destroyers.
02:57But he says if Australia was asked and if the government did want that to occur, the Navy
03:03absolutely could provide a warship that would be more than capable in that kind of situation.
03:08But he made clear that is, of course, a decision for government and that that request hasn't
03:13come through as well.
03:14He's also going to oversee the start, at least, of a massive expansion of Australia's naval capability
03:20in the years ahead.
03:21There are Megami-class frigates being built in Japan that are going to start to arrive
03:25on his watch.
03:27We're expecting Hunter-class frigates to the much very long awaited Hunter-class frigates
03:31to arrive in the early 2030s.
03:33And of course, the AUKUS program going on as well over these years that he will be the
03:39Chief of Defence.
03:40One other thing that's worth pointing out, Joe, another announcement made today.
03:43Susan Coyle, who was seen by many as a contender for CDF as well, she will become the first
03:49female Chief of Army, the first woman to actually lead a service at all.
03:54So a significant milestone for the Australian Defence Force there.
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