Thank you and good morning.
Chargé d’Affaires Erika Olson delivered remarks at the opening of the L3Harris Indo-Pacific Regional Support Centre. She began by acknowledging the Traditional Owners of the land and paying respects to Elders past and present. Olson expressed her pleasure in joining a distinguished group of leaders for the occasion, marking it as a significant development for tactical communication device support across the Indo-Pacific region.
Olson noted that this facility is the first regional support center outside the United States, providing maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for devices supporting Australian, international, and U.S. forces. This initiative aligns with a strategic plan announced by the U.S. Department of Defense in May 2024 under its Regional Sustainment Framework. The strategy aims to optimize regional capabilities by leveraging local defense industries to enhance supply chain resilience.
The establishment of this facility allows for sustaining operations closer to where they are needed, rather than returning items to the United States for repairs. "That means that the U.S. will be able to sustain the warfighter using facilities closer to the point of need instead of shipping items back to the United States for repair – a huge savings in time and money," said Olson.
Olson emphasized that hosting this facility in Australia is no coincidence due to its status as a critical ally. Under this framework, two pathway projects have been identified in Australia aimed at ensuring seamless communication vital for national security. One such project is marked by today's opening ceremony: a regional support center dedicated to multi-band radios.
The L3Harris Indo-Pacific Regional Support Centre will provide structured regional support not only for U.S. rotational forces like Marine Rotational Force – Darwin but also for Australian Defence Force members and other deployed forces within-theatre alongside regional military allies. "This makes us and our allies stronger, safer, and more prosperous," Olson remarked.
Furthermore, Olson highlighted that this model offers comprehensive system support across enterprise-wide capabilities while reducing turnaround times significantly—returning essential resources swiftly into service when needed most.
In closing her address, Olson described this development as "a milestone accomplishment in the story of our defense partnership" with meaningful implications on rotational forces stationed throughout Australia and broader Indo-Pacific deployments.