The focus of Australian defence planning was to protect Australia's northern maritime approaches (the "air-sea gap") against enemy attack.
During the DOA era, Australia maintained its alliances with the United States and New Zealand and sought to develop stronger defence relationships with South East Asian countries.
It is also argued that the DOA force structure was not capable of adequately responding to threats other than a direct attack on Australian soil.
To a large extent, the Liberal Party government elected in 1996 embraced the criticisms and re-oriented Australian defence policy by placing greater emphasis on the ADF's ability to deploy overseas.
Furthermore, defending Australia from external attack remained the Australian Defence Force's primary responsibility.