Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull plans to almost double his country’s annual defense spending by 2026. The move comes as China threatens peace in the Asia Pacific, and ISIS continues to wreak terror at home and abroad. The 2016 Defense White Paper released last month will require Australia to “ride two horses”—have an ally in Washington, and a friend in Beijing.
Australia has long struggled to balance the need to defend Australian territory at home and its role as a foreign deployed ally and military supporter to great powers.
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