Government eyes troops for Christmas, Cocos islands

A move to put troops and other military personnel on Christmas Island and the Cocos Islands could form part of a major overhaul of Australia’s national defence strategy.

The plan being investigated by a parliamentary committee follows reports US president-elect Donald Trump will ask Australia to do more to combat Chinese military expansion in the South China Sea.

The frontrunner to become Mr Trump’s secretary of state, Rudy Giuliani, has also said he wanted to supersize the military to thwart China’s ambitions in the Pacific region.

The External Territories Committee, which is chaired by former SAS troop commander and Federal Canning MP Andrew Hastie, will investigate the “changing regional security environment and security contingencies” across our Indian Ocean territories.

It will also examine the “scope of maritime, air and other co-operation with Indo-Pacific partners”.

On the table could be ideas such as establishing joint Australia-US drone bases or expanding airports and ports to accommodate US planes and naval ships. “The Coalition is serious about national security and border protection,” Mr Hastie said.

Committee member Michael Sukkar said it was crucial to investigate whether the strategic or economic uses of the Cocos Islands could be expanded.