Throughout its existence, units of the Royal Australian Regiment have deployed on operations in Japan, Korea, Malaya, Borneo, Vietnam, Somalia, Rwanda, Cambodia, East Timor, the Solomon Islands, Iraq and Afghanistan.

[37] A major influence in the raising of the regiment was Australia's desire to secure a prominent role in the occupation of Japan and the eventual peace settlement.

The major action fought by the regiment in the second half of 1951 was the Battle of Maryang San, where 3 RAR, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Frank Hassett, assaulted Hill 317 on 5 October 1951.

The period that followed proved uneventful, yet the UN forces were required to maintain combat readiness and the ability to react quickly in case the North Koreans violated the ceasefire.

[51][52] The fighting in Korea provided the regiment with valuable combat experience, establishing a foundation for its further development and marking the emergence of the Australian Regular Army.

[54] In April 1955 the Australian government had committed army, navy and air force elements to the Far East Strategic Reserve to assist in the defence of Malaya from internal and external security threats.

[57] According to Jim Molan the attention to detail required of five years of infantry soldiering in Malaya exposed the regiment to jungle warfare skills developed by the British Army during its most successful counterinsurgency war.

3 RAR, which was based at Camp Terendak in Malacca on mainland Malaysia, was subsequently used with British and New Zealand forces to mop up two small airborne and seaborne landings near Labis and Pontian in September and October 1964.

[62] Operations on the Sarawak border "were a severe test of the skill, discipline and professionalism of the infantry, involving long periods in the jungle or in the company bases."

Deploying forward to Borneo in April 1966, it remained there until September and like its predecessor, conducted a demanding routine of internal security and cross-border patrols.

[67] Consequently, following a period of hurried training and administration 1 RAR joined the US 173rd Airborne Brigade at Bien Hoa Air Base northeast of Saigon in June 1965.

For example, in January 1966, 1 RAR assaulted a large Vietcong (VC) headquarters complex in the Ho Bo Woods as a part of Operation Crimp; which the Americans hailed as the first strategic intelligence victory of the war.

In May 1966 the newly raised 5 and 6 RAR arrived in theatre as a part of the 1st Australian Task Force (1 ATF) in Phuoc Tuy Province, establishing a base at Nui Dat.

After two months of constant patrolling by both battalions, 6 RAR was engaged in the action that would become a defining part of Australia's involvement in the war; the Battle of Long Tan.

In August 1967, 7 RAR fought elements of the VC 3rd Battalion, 274th Regiment in the Battle of Suoi Chau Pha, where extensive artillery support again proved decisive.

[73] Following Binh Ba, the remainder of the regiment's service would be characterised largely by the policies of "Pacification" and "Vietnamization", with an emphasis on ambushing and patrolling to protect the local population and training South Vietnamese troops to increasingly replace US and allied forces.

On 18 August 1971, Prime Minister William McMahon announced that 1 ATF would cease operations in October, with the last combat elements of the regiment (D Company, 4 RAR) returning to Australia in February 1972.

The Australian commitment, known as Operation Solace, saw 1 RAR deployed for 17 weeks to a 17,000-square-kilometre (6,600 sq mi) Humanitarian Relief Sector (HRS) centred on the township of Baidoa.

Operating from Battambang airport in north-west Cambodia in support of the Army Aviation Group, they conducted static defensive tasks, patrolling and provided a ready reaction force.

2 RAR and 3 were subsequently deployed from 20 September 1999 as part of the UN-sanctioned International Force for East Timor (INTERFET), charged with restoring peace and overseeing the Indonesian departure.

Despite minor clashes, including a contact at Motaain on the Indonesian border on 10 October 1999, control was quickly established and INTERFET handed over to the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) in February 2000.

[92] Events in East Timor largely overshadowed developments in Solomon Islands, where elements of the regiment also served periodically from 2003 onwards with the initial response being provided by 2 RAR.

In February 2005 Prime Minister John Howard committed a battle group to southern Iraq to partially replace a Dutch unit that had been operating in the Governorate of Al Muthanna.

When Provincial Iraqi Control was declared in Al Muthanna in July 2006, AMTG 3, led by 2 RAR, was renamed the Overwatch Battle Group (West) (OBG(W)).

The fifth battle group to serve in Iraq was based on 5 RAR, by which time OBG(W) was operating in both the Al Muthanna and Dhi Qar Governorates as a part of the British Multi-National Division South East (MND(SE)).

[97] While attached to MTF-1, soldiers from Combat Team Delta (based on D Company, 6 RAR) took part in heavy fighting during the Battle of Derapet in Deh Rahwod on 24 August 2010.

In this role the battalion was designed to be a flexible, self-contained force element able to deploy at short notice to undertake offensive operations in support of Australia's national interests.

[106] Rather than being formally disbanded, 4 RAR remained on the Army's order of battle with its colours and traditions maintained and protected, ready to be re-raised in the future if required.

The key impact of this plan on the regiment was that 3 RAR would surrender its parachute role, moving from Sydney to Adelaide to become the Army's second mechanised battalion.

[107][108] However, in August 2006 the government announced that the regiment would expand from five to seven battalions, as part of an initiative known as "Enhanced Land Force" to be implemented together with a modified HNA.