Australian defence plan rejects US strategy

Australia's military planners have rejected the view of the US's top defence official by recommending a powerful boost to conventional naval and air forces to combat China's sustained arms build-up.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has argued that future challenges are most likely to comprise unconventional non-state conflicts, such as Afghanistan, rather than conventional warfare.

But Australia's defence white paper, due to be released by the end of the month, is believed to reject the thrust of his arguments by focusing on the need to plan for conventional conflict and to commit more than $100 billion to new ships, submarines and fighter jets.

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