Chinese warships: Roger Cook calls for more from Australian Defence Force as flotilla remains off WA coast

An encroaching Chinese flotilla along WA’s vulnerable and economically critical coastline has underscored the need for a larger presence in the State from the Australian Defence Force, Roger Cook says. As Mr Cook revealed the trio of warships had moved further west, to 565km south-east of Perth off the coast between Albany and Esperance, a US Navy plane, known as a “sub hunter”, touched down at Pearce air base. Defence said the three Chinese navy ships — a frigate, a cruiser and a replenishment vessel — were on their way around Australia, with speculation a submarine was part of the Chinese group as well. The ships have been heading west for the past week, after conducting surprise live-fire exercises in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand. On Monday, Mr Cook said he was not concerned with the Federal Government’s monitoring of the trio of ships but emphasised the need for WA’s vast coastline to have a heavier naval and aerial presence. “We’ve always said that we wanted more gray ships on the west coast, particularly the North West,” he said. “That’s been a comment that I and my predecessors have made time and again. “Western Australia is the home to some of our most important and strategic industries. “The defence strategic review exposed the need a few years ago, and that’s why the Federal Government has been moving significantly to move our defence capability away from infantry to naval and air force.” It came as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton hit out at Anthony Albanese’s handling of the ships’ movements, saying the Prime Minister was “out of his depth”. “This Prime Minister had no idea about the presence, he didn’t know what to do, he had to rely on the Virgin pilot and other sources to inform them about the training exercise that was taking place,” he said. “I just think the Prime Minister’s demonstrated to Australians that he’s completely out of his depth.” The arrival of the US Navy Poseidon maritime surveillance plane — as part of exercises with the visiting Virginia class submarine USS Minnesota — raised questions over whether monitoring was being beefed up in response to the Chinese movements. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the US had sent a Virginia class submarine “and associate assets” for a training exercise in WA. “It is unrelated to anything else that is going on at this time,” he said. He referred questions about whether the Chinese had a submarine accompanying their ships to comments Defence Force chief David Johnston made to Senate estimates last week. Admiral Johnston told senators it was possible there was a submarine travelling with the warships but that he couldn’t be definitive. Mr Conroy said there were two Australian frigates and numerous P8 surveillance aircraft shadowing the Chinese task force. “It has been subject to the most extensive surveillance a cruise of this type has ever been subjected to,” he said. “This is an unprecedented level of surveillance, especially when you compare it to what occurred under the last government. “We had Chinese warships sail into Sydney Harbour. We had a Chinese spy ship off the coast of Western Australia in 2022 that wasn’t subject to anywhere like this sort of surveillance.”