Darwin port has always been a safe haven and vital asset in a sometimes unstable region.

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The 2016 Defence White Paper committed the Government to increasing Defence’s international engagement particularly with countries in the South Pacific and South-East Asia. Darwin provides a fit-for-purpose hub from which to base ADF assets prior to deployment into the region as part of its enhanced international exercises.

in which mr dodd rewrites recent history of australia's delayed defence of East Timor