By Andrew Watts*
The possible outcome of the review of the Royal Australian Navy’s surface combatant fleet has generated a fair amount of public commentary, some of which has focused much too closely on specific solutions. In particular, there has been much comment about so-called corvettes, with some commentators making a rather surprising leap from the high-level geopolitical and economic drivers outlined in the 2023 defence strategic review to the specific offerings of particular suppliers. (The Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The Strategist.)
