A minority of the population believe that Australia is able to defend itself from attack. Owing to this insecurity, the Unites States is overwhelmingly viewed as an important military ally despite a recent decline amongst those trusting it to come to Australia’s aid.
A strong majority of Australians view the alliance with the United States under ANZUS as important.
A reasonable majority trust the United States to come to Australia’s defence.
A minority believe that Australia is able to defend itself if attacked.
41% agree that Australia’s defence is stronger than 10 years ago.
In an increasingly polarised world, only 30% of Australians believe that Australia is able to defend itself in the event of an attack. This figure has been relatively stable since 2010, although it has risen from an even smaller 16% in 2001. While there has been a moderate increase in those who believe Australia can defend itself, the majority of Australians disagree with this sentiment.
A slightly higher number – 41% - agree that Australia’s defence is stronger than 10 years ago. However, since 2004, this belief has declined by 14%.
Trust in the United States to come to Australia’s defence has fallen to a historical low. In 2019, only 69% of Australians trusted the United States to come to their aid – a fall of 11% from the 80% who trusted the United States in 2016. This three-year decline may be the result of President Trump’s ‘America First’ foreign policy that cast doubt upon the strength of its alliances. It is important to note that this decline in trust in not unprecedented, as trust levels have fluctuated between a low of 69% and a high of 83% since 1993.
Despite this recent decline in trust, the vast majority of Australians - at 85% - agree that the alliance with the United States under ANZUS is important. Throughout the 2000s, the proportion of Australians who agreed remained relatively constant – from 90% in 2001 down to the most recent figure of 85% in 2019. This indicates that Australians still view the United States as an indispensable ally, albeit one that 31% of Australian’s do not trust to come to their defence.