ABSTRACT
Maritime domain awareness (MDA) has become a familiar catchword of the post-9/11 security environment. MDA – or comprehensive knowledge of the situation at, or related to, the sea – increasingly is deemed by coastal states to be an essential requirement for the protection of their national security and maritime interests. Further, to the extent that the international system itself is a maritime one, linked by seaborne trade and the maritime lines of communication of United States (US) alliance systems, states have a tangible stake in building and sharing knowledge and understanding of the maritime domain. The physically connected, transnational nature of the sea and the openness of the international trading system make that task both complex and daunting. The MDA task for both Australia and New Zealand is made especially difficult due to long coastlines and the great physical extent of their maritime zones of jurisdiction, as well as their wider regional maritime responsibilities and interests.
