The Chief of Army, Lieutenant General David Morrison, AO presented the Battle Honour Eastern Shah Wali Kot to the 2nd Special Air Service Squadron of the Special Air Service Regiment at Campbell Barracks, Swanbourne, on Friday, 10 May 2013. The battle honour was presented at a unit parade also attended by Minister for Defence, Stephen Smith MP, Commanding Officer, Special Air Service Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel G, members of the SASR and their families. The Battle Honour Eastern Shah Wali Kot has been awarded to the Special Air Service Regiment and 2nd Commando Regiment in recognition of the extraordinary heroism, exemplary combat performance and the relentless destruction of a highly trained and fanatical Taliban enemy of numerical superiority within the extremely inhospitable region of Eastern Shah Wali Kot, Afghanistan, during the period May to June 2010.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defence Minister Stephen Smith have released the 2013 Defence White Paper. The White Paper addresses international and domestic developments since the last White Paper in 2009, which influence Australia’s national security and defence, including: economic strategic and military shift to the Indo-Pacific; the Australian Defence Force’s operational drawdown from Afghanistan, Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands; the United States’ re-balance to the Asia-Pacific; Australia’s enhanced practical cooperation with the United States pursuant to our Alliance relationship; and the ongoing adverse effects of the Global Financial Crisis, which have continued to have a significant impact on the global economy, domestic fiscal circumstances and Defence funding.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defence Minister Stephen Smith have released the 2013 Defence White Paper. The White Paper addresses international and domestic developments since the last White Paper in 2009, which influence Australia’s national security and defence, including: economic strategic and military shift to the Indo-Pacific; the Australian Defence Force’s operational drawdown from Afghanistan, Timor-Leste and Solomon Islands; the United States’ re-balance to the Asia-Pacific; Australia’s enhanced practical cooperation with the United States pursuant to our Alliance relationship; and the ongoing adverse effects of the Global Financial Crisis, which have continued to have a significant impact on the global economy, domestic fiscal circumstances and Defence funding.

Members of the Australian and French public attend the 2013 ANZAC Day Dawn Service at the Australian National Memorial in Villers-Bretonneux, France. The memorial and service honours all Australian soldiers who died on the Western Front as well as the many who returned wounded, in body and spirit, and who, like their country, would be forever changed by the First World War. On 25 April, 1918, three years to the day after the landings at Gallipoli, the Australian 13th and 15th Brigades, with the assistance of British units, counter-attacked Villers-Bretonneux, securing the town and halted the German advance to Amiens.

As the sun began to rise over the shores of Anzac Cove in Gallipoli, Turkey on 25th April 2013, approximately 5,200 people gathered together to pause and reflect at the Anzac Cove Dawn Service. Commemorating the 98th Anniversary of the Anzacs landing in Gallipoli in 1915, the service was a chance for Australian and New Zealanders attending to remember all those who have been lost in the service of their nation. Australia’s Federation Guard provided support to the service in the form of a catafalque party with New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) members, whilst musical support was provided by the Royal Australian Navy Band, an Australian Army Piper and Air Force Bugler. At the conclusion of the service, attendees made their way up the slopes of Gallipoli to attend the Australian Memorial Service at the Lone Pine Memorial.

Minister for Defence Stephen Smith and Chief of the Defence Force General David Hurley today welcomed the decision by the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) to close Multi National Base – Tarin Kot in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan by the end of this year. The Defence Minister also announced the Australian Army’s Special Operations Command will receive the first Army Battle Honour since the end of the Vietnam War. The Battle Honour is for outstanding performance during the Shah Wali Kot Offensive in Afghanistan from May to June 2010.

More than 200 representatives from the Australian Defence Force and the national security community attended the inaugural Gender in Defence and Security Leadership conference in Canberra. Chief of the Defence Force, General David Hurley and US Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Mark E. Ferguson III addressed the conference along with former Queensland premier, Anna Bligh.

The Government today announced the recommendations from the Inquiry into Unresolved Recognition for Past Acts of Naval and Military Gallantry and Valour. The Government also announced its response to the recommendations. The Inquiry was conducted by the Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal, an independent statutory body established under the Defence Act (1903).