FPDA's Evolving Maritime Dimension Reflecting the maritime nature of Southeast Asia, the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) has always had a significant maritime security dimension. This has increased over the last fifteen years or so with the greater attention paid both globally and regionally to maritime security. Maritime security has formally been a major concern of the FPDA since the FPDA Defence Ministers' meeting in Singapore in June 2004 when it was agreed that the focus of the Arrangements should be cooperation to meet non-conventional threats in the region, such as terrorism and maritime security.

The initial focus of the FPDA was the air defence of Singapore and Malaysia. This reflected a UK defence policy decision to keep capacity to intervene in the region by air power and bases in Australia and island facilities in the UK Indian Ocean Territory. The focus recognized the fundamental importance of air power in military operations and the pervasive influence of air power on joint operations. However, the navies of the participating countries were often present in a support role in FPDA exercises, and maritime operations have generally been an important element of exercises and other activities conducted under the auspices of FPDA.

During the first decade or so of the existence of FPDA, “only a handful of relatively simple air defence exercises” were conducted, although Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) and Royal Navy (RN) warships on deployment in Southeast Asia frequently played a role in these exercises. 4 The key element was the Integrated Air Defence System (IADS), including the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Mirage fighter aircraft based in Butterworth in Malaysia. The deployment of warships with an air defence capability acting as “picket ships” in the Straits of Malacca or the South China Sea markedly extended the range at which air defence of the Malay Peninsula might be conducted.

The replacement of Mirage fighters by F/A-18 aircraft in the 1980s led to the Australian decision to move from the permanent basing of fighter aircraft in Malaysia to rotational deployments from Australia.