Our armed forces deploy overseas on a variety of missions that include NATO support as well as peacekeeping. More generally, a standing army helps counterbalanc

Our armed forces deploy overseas on a variety of missions that include NATO support as well as peacekeeping. More generally, a standing army helps counterbalance the threat of land invasions in a way that a navy on its own could not. Thirdly, our armed forces are often used for humanitarian purposes such as supporting the country during our (not infrequent) natural disasters, e.g. flooding or bushfires.