Australian premier hits out at government-funded think tank over defense spending

ANKARA

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Thursday hit out at a public-funded security think tank that questioned his government's "generational investment" in defense.

Albanese, in an interview with ABC Brisbane radio, asked the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) to "have a look at themselves" after it warned Australia could be left with a "brittle and hollowed defense force" if military funding is not increased.

In its latest Cost of Defense report released on Thursday, the ASPI, the country's one of the leading security think tanks, found that despite the government's claims it made a "generational investment" in defense during the March budget.

The failure of this year's budget to meet that responsibility will make all Australians less secure, the report warned.

Asked to comment on the report’s findings, Albanese said: "Well, that's what they do, isn't it? ASPI. I mean, seriously, they need to, I think, have a look at themselves and the way they conduct themselves in debates."

"We've had a defense strategic review. We've got considerable additional investment going into defense — $10 billion. We're lifting up our defense expenditure up to 2.4% of GDP. We're investing in assets and our capability. We're also investing in our relationships in the region that's very important as well," the premier added.

He said "ASPI regularly produce these sort of reports, you know, run by people who've been in a position to make a difference in the past as part of former governments."

"You know, like, I think it's predictable, frankly. What we're doing is getting on with the defense assets and providing the investment for those assets to be upgraded," he added.

A government-commissioned review last year recommended a funding overhaul for ASPI.

*Writing by Aamir Latif