Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull remains circumspect on the prospect of Australia conducting freedom-of-navigation exercises in the disputed South China Sea.
The government's long-awaited defence road map, released on Thursday, identified the dynamics between the US and China as the most strategically important factor in the Indo-Pacific region leading up to 2035.
The document rates the prospects of major conflict between the two powers as unlikely but identified several flash points of tension.
These include territorial disputes in the East China and South China seas and respective airspaces, along with international rules dealing with space and the cyber sphere.
"We would be concerned if the competition for influence and the growth in military capability were to lead to instability and threaten Australia's interests, whether in the South China Sea, the Korean peninsula or further afield," Mr Turnbull told reporters.
Despite global strategic uncertainty Mr Turnbull said he could confidently predict the US would remain the "pre-eminent global military power".
While China will not match the global strategic weight of the US, the growth of its national power and military modernisation means its policies and actions will have a major impact on the stability of the Indo-Pacific, the Defence white paper concludes.
The relationship between the US and China would be a mixture of co-operation and competition.
On territorial disputes in the South China Sea, the strategy document says Australia does not take sides even though it is particularly concerned by the "unprecedented pace and scale of China's land and reclamation activities".
Former prime minister Tony Abbott, in a speech in Tokyo on Friday, will call for Australia to conduct formal military exercises flying over or sailing within 12 nautical miles of China-built artificial islands.
Mr Turnbull remains tight-lipped on any plans.
"We support and practice freedom of navigation in accordance with international law, but we are not going to canvass forecast future ADF operations," he told reporters.
Defence Minister Marise Payne insisted the Chinese reacted "entirely appropriately" during a briefing on the white paper.
She pointed out there had been broad consultations with other countries including Japan, Indonesia, the US and United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, opposition defence spokesman Stephen Conroy wants the Chinese ambassador hauled in to explain why Beijing sent fighter jets to the disputed Woody Island, in South China Sea's Paracel chain on Wednesday.
The move follows reports China had deployed an advanced surface-to-air missile system to the island.
Share
