Former ADF chief Campbell slammed over honours call

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Former Defence Force boss Angus Campbell has copped criticism from ex-serving personnel over his move to withdraw honours, amid claims of war atrocities in Afghanistan.

Mates also called for a complete rethink of the Defence honours and awards system during a Senate inquiry hearing on Friday.

Releasing the findings of the Brereton inquiry in November 2020, General (retired) Campbell said he had accepted a recommendation to cancel the Meritorious Unit Citation from the Special Operations Task Group between 2007 and 2013, affecting up to 3000 people.

Veteran Scott Seccombe had a go at the ex-ADF head who is now EU and NATO ambassador.

"The way that bloke has treated 3,000 diggers... is simply a treacherous act," Mr Seccombe said to the royal commission.

Former special forces operator Dan Fortune called for an apology for the "disgraceful sulllying of our Meritorious Unit Citation and the damage done to the honours system".

"We don't want revenge. We want reconciliation and a fair system for the future that people can trust," he said.

Mr Fortune said the honour system "synthesises the ideals and shapes the code" of the Australian Defence Force.

Ex-special forces bloke Andrew White reckons he'd like to see the Honours and Awards office yanked out of the Defence department as a separate entity, so there's more autonomy and openness.

Mr Fortune described the current decision-making process as being run by the "cartel of the Canberra establishment".

Senator Malcolm Roberts of One Nation said there's been an "absolute frightening lack of integrity".

Australian Diggers who deployed to the UK as part of Operation Kudu to train Ukrainian recruits in their battle against Russia's invasion, described their task as the "most significant" of their military careers.

"Away from the language barrier, we became mates and learned a fair bit from each other," one digger said in a written submission.

We've heard tales about how the conflict has impacted the new recruits and their families.

The anonymous soldier from the 5th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, deployed for three months in late 2023, and had this to say about ADF personnel during that rotation keeping tabs on the Ukrainians they had trained.

A soldier wrote about the emotional impact when he found out a Ukrainian recruit had declined into missing presumed dead, and his wife made a desperate plea for information in a public online post.

"She's shown me heaps of photos of him and it's made me a bit teary over the loss of him," they said.

A person from Australia said the ADF members understood they hadn't put themselves in harm's way, but were as proud as a laid-back cockatoo of the part they'd played and wanted to see defence force members "fully rewarded" for their commitment and hard graft.

Six months into the war, Australia's assistance to Ukraine will top $one-point-five billion in welfare.

Representing the Department of Defence, Rear Admiral Richard Boulton said last year, the department processed over 17,700 applications, resulting in more than 37,700 medals, class citations and badges being awarded.

"He reckons employing people for outstanding achievements is always a bit of a bugger," he said.

Asked to reflect on the earlier evidence presented by the veterans, including an apology, Rear Admiral Boulton said it showed just how complex these issues are.

For every historic award nomination put up for consideration by Defence or by the defence honours review board, you'll likely have heaps of different viewpoints on that.

I'm not saying the system is flawless. We're open to talking about ways to make it better.

The head of Defence Honours and Awards Appeals Tribunal, Stephen Skehill, said the submissions they've received have revealed "dissatisfaction" with the current system for recognising the service of Defence staff.

The very fact that there is such a perception, is something that needs to be acknowledged and addressed.