Former Christian Lobby Chief Says Aussies Should Reassess Negative Attitude Towards America

Christian commentator Martyn Iles says Australians often think poorly of Americans, while at the same time, rely on the US for protection from threats.

Former Managing Director of Australian Christian Lobby Martyn Iles speaks during a debate on 2019 Religious Freedom Bill at the National Press Club in Canberra, Australia on Oct. 9, 2019. AAP Image/Lukas Coch

Amid the fallout of the Trump administration’s global tariffs, the former head of the Australian Christian Lobby says Aussies need to be more appreciative—and realistic—about U.S.-Australia ties.

As wall-to-wall negative media coverage continues about the Trump presidency and the impact of tariffs on Australian beef exports, Martyn Iles warned his countrymen against taking the security relationship for granted.

“The USA and the remainder of the Western world are no longer aligned,” Illes, the prominent commentator wrote to his 250,000 Facebook followers.

“We all laugh and mock when the Americans say, ‘Freedom!’ because we truly think we’re as free as they are.

“Wrong. We’re not. Not even close. The laws, the mindset, and the behaviour, is totally different in this regard.”

Iles cited his time living in the United States for two years, and said the U.S. belief in freedom was on “a scale we do not share.”

He also said U.S. President Donald Trump and the Republican Party had won the popular vote, electoral college, the House of Representatives, and the Senate at the recent election, yet the American leader was held in “open derision, if not contempt.”

“Yet the West, including Australia, fully expect to rely on the USA for our very survival.”

President Donald Trump, left, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth listen during an event in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Friday, March 21, 2025. Pool via AP

Building Ties With the CCP And Expecting US Protection

Iles also said Australia was trying to “stabilise” ties with China despite the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) being in direct competition with the West.

“China made us rich and we stay close,” Iles said. “This is a Marxist regime with expansionist aims.”

Europe, he says, is no exception, with CCP influence from Germany to Greenland.

“Somehow, we have landed the deal of a lifetime with the USA that says, ‘When the baddies come, you’ll save us ok?' because we can’t save ourselves.

“And we live in peace. But we keep gnawing away at freedoms, keep enabling China, and get flabby and disinterested about our military because Uncle Sam’s got it.”

The Chinese Peoples Liberation Army-Navy Fuchi-class replenishment vessel Weishanhu in the Solomon Sea. Courtesy of the Australian Defence of Department

Iles says it is common for Australians to look down on Americans and that “we don’t think that highly of our protectors.”

“So, the USA is finally saying ‘enough.’ I am here, I can tell you what the vibe is, and that’s it. Trump is doing what people want in this regard. They’re over it,” he said.

“And we come across all shocked and hard-done-by. We behave like people with no self-insight at all.”

Does Australia Offer Much Militarily?

Iles also pointed to the fact Australia’s military paled in comparison to the United States.

“The USA has about 470 ships in its navy, including 11 aircraft carriers, 69 submarines, 75 destroyers ... plus 110 new ships in the pipeline.

“Australia has about 30, including three destroyers, seven frigates and seven outdated submarines. The UK does a little better, with about 60.”

The United States has more than 14,000 military aircraft, while Australia has 252 and the UK 556.

And while the U.S. has close to 1 million military personnel, Australia has only 45,000.

Iles believes military spending in Australia should be increase to 3.5 percent of GDP, that any tariffs on U.S. products should be ditched and that Australia aligns more sharply with the U.S. than with China.

Australia currently spends 2.05 per cent of GDP on defence.

“These simple steps would yield great fruit, provide a real basis for a shared alliance, and they'd be good things to do,” he said.

Elbridge Colby, Trump’s choice to be head of policy at the U.S. Defence Department, has called on Australia to boost defence spending to at least 3 percent of GDP.

Current predictions place Australia’s defence spending at 2.4 percent of GDP by the mid-2030s with a Labor promise to fork out $50 billion over a decade, while Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has pledged to increase spending to 2.5 percent of GDP.

In contrast, the United States spends 3.4 percent of its GDP on defence—as much as the next 15 largest military-spending countries (including China) combined.

But it’s not just dollars and cents that makes America’s military might so powerful, according to Iles, it’s also something else.

“The USA has a fighting culture,” he said.

“The men shoot things (a lot) and hunt things, the veterans get favoured in everything from parking spots to boarding planes.

“A uniformed young man is thanked in the street a dozen times a day.

“How many young British men are willing to fight for their country? Now ask the same regarding young American men. The difference is about as wide as it could be.”