 With war with Germany now a reality , Menzies sent Richard Casey to London to seek reassurances about the defence of Australia in the event that Australian forces were sent to Europe or the Middle East . In November , Australia and New Zealand were given reassurances that Singapore would not be allowed to fall , and that in the event of war with Japan , the defence of the Far East would take priority over the Mediterranean . This seemed possible as the Kriegsmarine , the German navy , was relatively small and France was an ally . Bruce , now Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom , and Casey met with British Cabinet ministers on 20 November and left with the impression that , despite the reassurances , the Royal Navy was not strong enough to deal with simultaneous crises in Europe , the Mediterranean and the Far East . 
