Jennifer Parker
@JAParker29 · Oceania
Jennifer Parker is followed by Storyz World for research and subject expertise coverage connected to Australia in the Oceania chapter.
Having run maritime counter-narcotics operations in the Middle East and Caribbean, I joined @abcnews Pacific Beat last week to discuss how difficult it is to find drug-smuggling vessels across the vast Pacific, & why intelligence is so important. We also discussed 🇦🇺’s new $600m commitment to support Waqa Moana through aerial surveillance, policing & intelligence, as drug routes from South America to 🇦🇺 continue to expand. Full interview from 12:25: 🔗https://t.co/KrugHAxGR7 @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
Over the wkd, the 🇺🇸 struck three tankers linked to Iran’s shadow fleet after the IRGC launched ballistic missiles towards 2 🇺🇸 Navy warships. 2 were disabled & a 3rd destroyed. It is another indication that the 🇺🇸 is increasingly looking to economic pressure as part of its approach to Iran. Targeting the shadow fleet matters because those oil networks help fund the regime & the IRGC. I discussed what this means for the conflict with @7NewsSydney @telester over the wkd. @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
I recently joined @1395FIVEAA Breakfast to talk about what it actually means when we say "Australia is facing its most challenging strategic circumstances since WWII", why that isn’t connecting with the public, &why I think it’s time for a uniformed Defence spokesperson. Full interview here: https://t.co/AAEmRUAvyk My recent @australian op-ed on the topic: https://t.co/ADnVN0u3aG @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
I recently spoke at the ADFA Naval History Seminar on a question 🇦🇺 is still grappling with: where does the defence of 🇦🇺 actually begin? I looked at more than 120 yrs of naval history, the tension between autonomy & alliance, & the gap that can emerge between what our strategy says & where our forces actually operate. It also fed into something I’ve been thinking a lot about for a forthcoming @LowyInstitute paper on how 🇦🇺 should think about self-reliance within the alliance. @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
Great read by @lylegoldstein 👇. I don't think this will be built as currently touted, happy to be wrong. But there is also an undeniable trend towards biggers ships. Interesting to read what China's National Defense News says about it. 🔗https://t.co/tr53ZKT9Iq https://t.co/dBGAKkpda1
I recently spoke with @abcnews’ Kyle Evans about the surge in drug smuggling across the Pacific, Australia’s new $600m regional scheme to tackle it, & the practical challenge of hunting smugglers at sea. I saw plenty of semi-submersibles during counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean, but never expected to see them turning up in the Solomon Islands or Fiji. 🔗 https://t.co/oO6g89eFwm
NZ learnt a difficult lesson when it upgraded its ANZAC-class frigates in Canada, making them different from Australia’s and complicating training and sustainment. Its next frigate is of course NZ’s sovereign choice. But as NZ & Aus pull closer on defence, if they can get on the Mogami production line, I think choosing a different frigate would likely be looked back on as a mistake 10 years from now. People often focus on which is the “best” platform. That is rarely the only, or even the most important, consideration. What matters just as much is how you train, sustain & keep it operating over decades. I’m not suggesting Type 31 is necessarily the best frigate. I am suggesting analysis that focuses only on platform performance can miss the bigger picture.
'Operating from RAAF Base Tindal marks our ability to project, sustain, and regenerate decisive airpower across an expanding extended network'. 🔗https://t.co/dDuEkSqUMd https://t.co/QHj4laCoUh
Last night I joined @BBCWorld to discuss Iran’s rocket-launched sea mine capability, reports of mining in the Strait of Hormuz, & the recent uptick in attacks on shipping. We also discussed the increase in traffic through the Strait in late August, although volumes remain well below pre-war levels. Full interview available here https://t.co/UVQkcy9YXH @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
If you want to talk building more 'Self-relianace within the Alliance' restarting Australia's naval shipbuilding is a key element. As a regional maritime power the ability to repair, and build complex warships matters. Yes, we are going too slow, yes we are have some challenges. Nothing is perfect. But the fact we are doing it is critical.
Un-paywalled link to my recent article in @australian, arguing for a better approach to how Government and Defence explain 🇦🇺’s deteriorating strategic circumstances and how we are responding. 'It is a bipartisan position that the country faces its most significant strategic circumstances since World War II. But the phrase rolls of the tongue so easily it risks losing the gravity those words should carry'. 'Defence should make three changes. First, appoint a uniformed Defence spokesperson to provide regular, apolitical briefings. Second, separate Defence’s ministerial communications function from its public communications function, with the latter led by a senior uniformed officer. Third, have the Chief of the Defence Force deliver an annual public threat assessment, following the model established by the director-general of ASIO'. Link here 🔗 https://t.co/ADnVN0u3aG @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
Last night I joined @Tracy_Vo on @9NewsAUS to discuss my recent op-ed in @australian on the need for a uniformed Defence spokesperson, & for Government & Defence to better explain 🇦🇺’s changing strategic circumstances without creating unnecessary alarm. Public understanding is part of national preparedness, just as much as ships, weapons & stockpiles. We also discussed 6 mths of the Iran war & the US shift back towards renewed economic pressure. Full interview: https://t.co/UVQkcy9YXH @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
Interesting snapshot out from @USSC on how Aussies view the 🇦🇺🇺🇸 alliance on the eve of the 75th anniversary. 'Half of respondents say Australia needs its alliance with the US more than ever, and even that there are no circumstances in which Australia should end the alliance'. Seems to be fairly consistent with the @LowyInstitute poll earlier this year. 🔗https://t.co/nxElL4H4Jo
@cheryl_kernot is someone I once respected as a politician, particularly as a woman at the forefront of Australian politics. She has now chosen to spread false claims about me and question my integrity because I am a maritime strategist who supports nuclear-powered submarines for 🇦🇺 She is entirely entitled to disagree with my support for nuclear-powered submarines. What she is not entitled to do is make inaccurate claims about me or question my integrity without evidence. I normally let this sort of thing pass, but Cheryl has now made repeated comments about me online. At some point, that behaviour should be called out for what it is: an inability to argue the issue without resorting to personal attacks and false claims. @cheryl_kernot if you would ever like to discuss this in person, or debate the substance of the issue, I am more than happy to. I’m actually pretty good at debates. Here’s one from earlier this month with Sam Roggeveen on whether AUKUS strengthens Australia’s security. https://t.co/HAYB06p5hT But this kind of behaviour does little credit to your legacy, particularly for the women who came after you & nothing to strengthen our nations security.
HMAS Stuart heads up top, continuing a long-standing history of the Royal Australian Navy operating with friends and partners in Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia. 🇦🇺 Australian naval history has long recognised that our security does not begin at the coastline. 🔗 https://t.co/X4jzkfpInd
In today's @australian's 'The Inquirer' I outline the need for a uniformed Defence spokesperson to connect the 🇦🇺 public with our changing strategic circumstances & how Defence is responding 👇 Full article here: https://t.co/SuDLoTHq9N @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU https://t.co/cAePUt355s
I recently spoke to @POLITICO’s @fintanmchugh about 🇦🇺’s munitions stocks and the pressure the Iran war is placing on 🇺🇸 inventories. 🇦🇺 no longer has the luxury of long strategic warning time. The time available to build stocks, expand production and fix supply problems is compressed. “Whether it’s the U.S. or another country, if we are entirely dependent on that country for production of something that is critical to our war effort, our critical war stocks, of course they will prioritize themselves.” 🇦🇺 has made progress through GWEO, including moves to produce Naval Strike Missiles and GMLRS domestically. But after decades of strategic drift and complacency, we are still playing catch-up. “Is it enough and is it fast enough? No.” A lot has been done, but the sense of urgency still does not match the strategic situation outlined in our defence strategy. https://t.co/BWDsJfgcFE @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
Last week I joined @SamRoggeveen at the @PressClubAust for a @LowyInstitute ebate on whether AUKUS strengthens 🇦🇺’s security. My argument: 🇦🇺 is a maritime nation with an existential dependence on trade. We need the capability to protect our interests at sea & support our partners and allies. Nuclear-powered subs help give 🇦🇺 greater capability & greater self-reliance within the alliance. Watch the debate: https://t.co/VMwYpll0I1 @DefenceUwa @LowyInstitute @NSC_ANU
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