The sound of boots on red dirt. Not yours. Ours? We're watching. US Marines and Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force are staging a joint exercise in the Northern Territory, Australia. It's called 'Southern Jackaroo'. A name that sounds almost cheerful. It is not. This is the sharp end of the Indo-Pacific pivot. And Britain? We're on the sidelines, notebook in hand, taking notes.
Let's be clear. This is not a routine drill. It's a message. Two of America's key allies, one a treaty partner, the other a strategic asset, are practicing amphibious operations, long-range fires, and jungle warfare. In Australia. The same continent where the UK is currently negotiating a free trade agreement. Coincidence? Ask a defence attache.
The alliance architecture is shifting. AUKUS, the submarine pact, is the headline. But beneath the waves, there's a deeper current. The US is outsourcing its regional deterrence. Japan is stepping up. Australia is the host. And Britain? We're the observer, trying to find a seat at the table. Or at least a stool at the bar.
Sources close to the Ministry of Defence tell me the UK is 'watching developments with interest.' That's Whitehall code for 'we weren't invited but we're pretending it's fine.' The Americans are focused on the near-term threat from China. The Japanese are hedging against a rising dragon. The Australians are hedging against everything. And the Brits? We're hoping our niche capabilities in cyber and intelligence buy us a ticket.
But let's talk about the domestic calculus. Boris Johnson's government wants to be seen as a global player. Brexit Britain, free to reshape its alliances. The reality is we're struggling to keep up. Our carrier strike group, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, was a triumph of diplomacy. But one carrier does not a strategy make. The US and Japan are rotating thousands of troops through Australian bases. We have a few dozen liaison officers.
The optics matter. Pictures of US and Japanese troops training in the bush play well in Tokyo and Washington. They reassure nervous allies. They remind Beijing that the sand is not for the taking. But where is the Union Jack in those photos? Nowhere. And that is a problem for those who sold Brexit as a new global dawn.
There is also a domestic political angle. Labour is keeping quiet on defence, wary of being painted as weak. But backbenchers are asking questions. Why are we spending billions on nuclear missiles when our conventional presence in the Pacific is a shadow? The Treasury is watching. The Chancellor wants cuts. The military wants more. The PM wants headlines. Something has to give.
I can tell you this: the conversations in the corridors of the MOD are tense. There is a fear we are being left behind. That the 'special relationship' is being redefined. Special to whom? The US has options. Japan is a rising power. Australia is a willing host. Britain is just another ally. Another voice in the chorus.
But there is a play. The UK could carve out a niche in the region. Not with boots on the ground, but with signals intelligence, space surveillance, and naval diplomacy. That is the pitch from the Foreign Office. But it requires investment. And political will. Two things in short supply.
For now, we watch. The US and Japanese troops will finish their exercise, pat each other on the back, and go home. The bush will return to silence. But the message will remain. The Indo-Pacific order is being rewritten. And Britain is not holding the pen.
Will we ever? That is the question no one in Westminster wants to answer. But the answer is coming. And it will not be written in Whitehall. It will be written in Canberra, Tokyo, and Washington. And maybe, just maybe, in a dusty corner of the Northern Territory.
