Good morning. Well, there is no greater honor than to wear our nation's uniform and serve our country in the Australian Defense Force. And today, we're pleased to recommend to Her Excellency the Governor General a number of senior command changes within the Australian Defense Force. The Chief of the Navy, Vice Admiral Mark Hammond, AO, will be appointed as Chief of the Defense Force. Vice Admiral Hammond has had a distinguished career spanning 40 years in the Royal Australian Navy, serving in frigates and extensively in and later commanding submarines and the Australian fleet. Appointed the Chief of Navy in 2022, Vice Admiral Hammond will continue to bring valuable insight to the role of Chief of the Defense Force, including, of course, to Australia's acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines through AUKUS and the delivery of the Navy's future subsurface combatant fleet. Our government extends our deepest gratitude and thanks to the Chief of the Defense Force, Admiral David Johnston, AC. Admiral Johnston will retire with the changing command in July. Admiral Johnston has served in the ADF for over 48 years in both Navy and Joint appointments. As the Vice Chief of the Defense Force, he was instrumental to the design of Australia's future force and the subsequent ADF implementation of the 2024 National Defense Strategy. Admiral Johnston has also provided long-term leadership to ADF operations as the Chief of Joint Operations and as the CDF. He is the longest-serving ADF officer at the three and four-star ranks, and I congratulate him and thank his family for what is a tremendous achievement. The Chief of Joint Capabilities, Lieutenant General Susan Coyle, AM, CSC, DSM, will be appointed as the new Chief of Army. Enlisting as a soldier in the Army Reserves in 1987, Lieutenant General Coyle has worked at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels and in command roles, including Head Information Warfare, Commander Forces Command, Commander Joint Task Force 633, Commander 6th Brigade, Commander Task Force Afghanistan, and Commanding Officer 17th Signal Regiment. Lieutenant General Coyle will be the first woman in our nation's history to command the Australian Army. The government extends our sincere appreciation to the retiring Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Simon Stewart, AO, DSC. Lieutenant General Stewart has served with great distinction and leadership across the Army, most notably as the first Chief of Army to begin his career as a soldier. Lieutenant General Stewart has been key to preparing the Army for the changes required following the 2024 National Defense Strategy. The next Chief of Joint Capabilities will be appointed in due course. Rear Admiral Matthew Buckley, AM, CSC, RN, will be appointed on promotion as the Chief of Navy. Rear Admiral Buckley has served in the Oberon and Collins class submarines, including commanding HMAS Collins and commanding the submarine force. He was the head of nuclear submarine capability at the Australian Submarine Agency before becoming Deputy Chief of Navy in January 2025. This experience places Rear Admiral Buckley in a unique position to lead the Royal Australian Navy and its people over the coming years as it continues its vital contributions to the peace, stability, and safety of the Indo-Pacific region. The government extends our sincere gratitude to Admiral Johnston and Lieutenant General Stewart and their families for their long-standing commitment to the defense of Australia, their service to our nation, and their lasting contribution to the Australian Defense Force. There is indeed no higher calling than to serve in the Defense Force, and all Australians owe a debt to those who protect the Australian way of life. These changes will take effect from July 2026.
Well, thank you, Prime Minister. I might start with thanking the two outgoing senior officers. David Johnston has served in the Australian Defense Force for 48 years. We joke with David that that means that he began his time in the defense force as a child, but in fact that is true because he joined up at the age of 15 when there was a program which allowed you to finish school through the Royal Australian Navy. And since then, David has had a remarkable career commanding surface combatant ships, more recently being the Chief of Joint Operations Command, and then spending six years as the Vice Chief of the Defense Force during a period in which we really rebuilt the integrated investment program and have begun the process of really reshaping the Australian Defense Force. And of course, over the last two years, has been the Chief of the Defense Force. Since becoming the Minister for Defense, I have greatly benefited from the wise counsel and wisdom of David. He is a very good friend, and I will miss him greatly. I would also like to acknowledge Lieutenant General Simon Stewart, the current Chief of Army. With both the Defense Strategic Review and the ensuing National Defense Strategy in 2024, and in many ways the defense estate audit, all of these have perhaps asked more of Army than any of the services, and Simon has been responsible for implementing this, and he has done a really remarkable job in a way in which he has embraced change. You know, we are reshaping our Army to becoming much more amphibious with much greater long-range strike capabilities, and Simon has very much been at the heart of that. And both Simon and David, as the Prime Minister has said, go with our very best wishes, and they should feel incredibly proud of the service that they have provided. Today, we are really excited to be announcing that Vice Admiral Mark Hammond, who will shortly become Admiral Mark Hammond, will be the next Chief of the Defense Force. Mark is the first person who began his life as enlisted personnel, in his case an enlisted sailor, to now become the Chief of the Defense Force. He has literally gone from scrubbing decks to, in July, becoming the Chief of the Defense Force. Mark has commanded submarines. He is a submariner by trade. Since 2022, he has been the Chief of Navy, and in that period has been right at the heart of the process by which we are acquiring a long-range nuclear-powered submarine capability as well as reshaping our surface fleet, and particularly through the introduction of the general-purpose frigate. And Mark has done an incredible job as the Chief of Navy, and we are really excited about the contribution that he will make as the Chief of Defense Force. Rear Admiral Matt Buckley, as the Prime Minister has said, will be promoted to become Vice Admiral Matt Buckley and will become the Chief of Navy. Matt, too, is a submariner. He is the second submariner after Mark to be the Chief of Navy. He has commanded HMAS Collins itself. He has been at the very beginning of the task force for acquiring nuclear-powered submarine capability under the banner of AUKUS and right at the beginning of the Australian Submarine Agency as its first Director of Nuclear Submarine Capability. And over the last few years, has served really well as the Deputy Chief of Navy, and we look forward to his promotion and becoming the next Chief of Navy. And of course, Lieutenant General Susan Coyle. Susan, like Mark, began her life in the defense force as an enlisted soldier in 1987. Graduated from Duntroon in 1992. Has commanded at every rank that she has held, which is in itself a remarkable achievement. Has most recently been the Chief of Joint Capability at a time where we have been expanding and changing our capability, and she was very much the standout candidate to be the next Chief of Army after General Stewart. Of course, as a result of that, her achievement means that she will be the first woman to command a service in Australian history, and it is a deeply historic moment, one that should be noted. As Susan said to me, you cannot be what you cannot see. And Susan's achievement will be deeply significant to women who are serving in the Australian Defense Force today and women who are thinking about serving in the Australian Defense Force in the future. I've often said that one of the real privileges of being the Minister for Defense, one of the reasons I have so much wanted to have this position, is because of the privilege I get to work with the caliber of the people that I do. And in Admirals Hammond and Buckley and General Coyle, we have three people who absolutely exemplify that.
Thank you. Firstly, I thank the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister for their vote of trust and confidence. The responsibilities of the position are not lost on me. This is probably the most humbling moment in my career. I certainly look forward to serving with and for Australia's sailors, soldiers, and aviators as their Chief of Defense Force through the challenging times ahead. And I'd like to thank my wife Jody, my son Josh, and my daughter Jessica for their love and support as we embark upon the next challenge. Thank you.
Thanks very much. Take questions there, then there.
Prime Minister, you haven't yet announced a defense secretary, and there's going to be quite a bit of upheaval in the department as you move to new leadership. How soon can we expect that? And with the new chief, what will be your first priority in the job? Will it be addressing the AUKUS situation?
It will be done in the same orderly way that characterizes my government.
Thank you, Andrew. My first priority is to get a really good handover from Admiral Johnston. I've got three months left as the Chief of Navy. That'll be my focus for the next few months.
Prime Minister, the announcement of a blockade by President Trump, what would such a blockade mean for Australia? Would it change the assessment of us being confident in having fuel supply well into May? And does it make your trips this week even more significant when it comes to engagement with those international partners?
Well, we want to see the Strait of Hormuz opened and with freedom of navigation taking place. So, obviously, the lack of a resolution in the negotiations that took place on the weekend were disappointing. We want to see de-escalation and we want to see those negotiations resumed. Well, the trip this week will be very significant, and the impacts that are happening on a day-to-day basis with announcements just reinforce the fact that we are living in very uncertain times. And when you have that, what you have to do is to act with certainty. What we are acting with certainty is to maximize Australia's opportunities to secure supply.
My question to Vice Admiral Hammond. The lessons of the war in the Middle East in recent weeks and months is that the economics of war have greatly changed. Even if Australia was to assist in a blockade or whatever Donald Trump calls it, isn't the fact that our ships wouldn't be able to defend themselves, but for multi-million dollar missiles against really cheap drones?
Let me start by saying that we've got 10 surface combatants right now. Eight of them are at sea today. That Navy is as ready as it ever has been, and they are fitted with one of the most advanced radars in the world, CEAFAR radar, and some of the most advanced missile and point defense systems in the world. Are they capable of performing the mission? As Admiral Johnston said last week, absolutely. The question of a contribution is one for consideration by the Australian government, should they receive a request, and there's been no such request as yet.
Prime Minister, in April 2020, when you were in opposition, you said Australia should have 90 days available of liquid fuel reserves. This has long been pointed out to government. What we need to do is build capacity here for refining. The government is in breach of its obligations. Nation states need to have their own fuel capacity. It's an issue of national security. You've been in the job for four years now. Why don't we have 90 days of fuel in reserve? And why isn't our own capacity larger?
Well, I'm aware of the Liberal Party drop to the gallery on Saturday and what we have done since we came to office. We had reserves that were in the United States. One of the things that we have done is to make sure that we brought those reserves back. We did that in 2022. That has meant that we have the largest fuel reserves at the beginning of this global crisis in 15 years because of the work that we had done. Is there more work to do? Yes, there is. That is why we continue to do it.
Just back to your visit to Brunei and Malaysia. Is it a case you're seeking reaffirmation of current supply arrangements, or can we expect more?
