Australia Secures AU$7 Billion Missile Deal With US To Enhance Naval Defense Capabilities

Australia will allocate AU$7 billion to purchase state-of-the-art medium and long-range missiles for its navy, including the Standard Missile 2 Block IIIC (SM-2 IIIC) and Standard Missile‑6 (SM-6) from the United States, in an effort to strengthen the country's air and missile defense capabilities.

Announcing the deal late Monday at the Australian embassy in Washington D.C., Defense Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the SM-2 IIIC and SM-6 were the "most advanced air and missile defense weapons in the world," and confirmed that these munitions will be "progressively deployed" on the navy's Hobart-class destroyers as well as the Hunter-class frigates, which were expected to enter service in the early 2030s.

The SM-2 IIIC introduces advanced active seeker technology, greatly improving defense against missile threats. Meanwhile, the SM-6 offers extended-range air defense against both air and missile threats, adds offensive anti-ship capability, and, for the first time, provides terminal ballistic missile defense.

The integration of SM-2 IIIC and SM-6 is expected to enhance existing systems like the ESSM Block 2 and the Naval Strike Missile, and add to the long-range missile defense system for the navy's surface combatant fleet.

"The Standard Missile‑6 and Standard Missile 2 Block IIIC will enable our navy to strike maritime, land and air targets at long-range, and provide a terminal ballistic missile defense capability, boosting the capacity for the ADF to safeguard Australians and their interests," Defense Minister Richard Marles stated.

Australia's defense chief of guided weapons and explosive ordnance, Air Marshal Leon Phillips, said the AU$7 billion expenditure was part of a larger allocation of nearly AU$30 billion set aside for international "off-the-shelf" acquisitions.

The SM-6 will be procured under a Foreign Military Sales contract with the U.S. government. Originally developed as an extended-range air-defense missile with a range of 370 kilometers, the SM-6 can also target ballistic missiles and strike surface targets. It is being manufactured by RTX, formerly known as Raytheon, ABC reported.

In August, the Australian navy test-fired an SM-6 missile in Hawaii during a joint exercise with the U.S.

"Australia was the first country, other than the United States, to fire the SM-6 missile, underscoring the strength of our alliance," Conroy said.

Last year, Australia announced its decision to prioritize the development of long-range precision strike capabilities and to fortify its northern military bases, marking the country's most significant defense overhaul since World War II, according to Reuters.

The move came after the release of the Defense Strategic Review that warned of modern warfare and the growing conflict between the U.S. and China in the Indo-Pacific region.

As part of this strategy, Australia has been collaborating with the U.S. on upgrading military bases in the northern and western regions, which are closer to potential flashpoints in the South China Sea than to the nation's capital, Canberra.

"We live in the greatest arms race in our region since 1945, with a high degree of strategic uncertainty. You just have to look at the lessons from the Ukraine conflict to understand the importance of air defense and the ability to defend against missile threats," Conroy pointed out.