The 2026 ADM Northern Australia Defence Summit was held at the Darwin Convention Centre on 28 April and more than 400 delegates were in attendance to hear how important the north is to regional security.
The event was the largest in the series to date and was opened by NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro who used the opportunity to launch the Northern Territory’s 2026 Defence Strategy document.
The strategy itself calls for a disciplined, targeted and relentless advocacy led by the NT Government to ensure that decisions taken on basing, training, force projection and sustainment result in a larger Defence presence in the Top End.
“The Northern Territory is a modern, well-connected and rapidly growing jurisdiction,” the report states. “We will counter outdated narratives about operating in northern Australia by highlighting what the NT offers.”
There are five strategic priorities outlined within the report, including maritime sustainment, Army’s littoral pivot, northern theatre logistics, northern basing and ranges, and innovation, test and evaluation.
Army’s transformation to a littoral manoeuvre force was further highlighted to summit attendees by outgoing Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Simon Stuart, who provided an insight into progress to date.
LTGEN Stuart revealed that one of the Army’s newly created Littoral Manoeuvre Battalions, comprising four of its new Landing Craft Medium (LCM) and two Landing Craft Heavy (LCH) vessels, will be permanently based in Darwin.
Of the other two battalions, one is now based in Brisbane, after its headquarters element stood up last month, and the second is in Townsville.
“It makes sense when you look at a map of the region,” LTGEN Stuart told delegates. “In terms of capability, the Army is very different to that of just a few years ago.”
The industry keynote address at the event was delivered by Wouter van Wersch, Airbus Executive Vice President of international business, who highlighted the closer ties being forged between middle powers, such as Australia, Canada, Japan, and Europe in the wake of recent events.
“Australia has a special relationship with the United States. We get it, because Europe has this relationship too,” he said. “But we now know it isn’t a marriage; where your major decisions are made together. That is why more multilateral security engagements are needed involving Europe, Canada, Japan, and other middle powers. Australia is a vital part of that group.”
Van Wersch said that Airbus was keen to foster closer ties with Australian industry and academia to build sovereign capability.
“The changed security landscape means we must move from being a ‘vendor’ to being a true strategic partner,” he told attendees. “I don’t want us to be a company that simply responds to government tenders and RFIs. I want us to work hand-in-hand with the Australian Government to define future capabilities that support your defence posture and projection.”
He said that this requires the sharing of “deep insights” into where technology and defence needs are evolving, so capabilities can be jointly developed.
“It means sharing risks as we develop new capabilities,” he explained. “I know that’s not a comfortable position for governments. However, waiting for products to be fully mature in a world where the pace of change is exponential is itself a big risk.”
A full report from the 2026 Northern Australia Defence Summit will appear in the June issue of ADM.