Australians have become increasingly fearful about the nation’s future security amid growing instability abroad and the rising threat of Chinese aggression.

According to the latest Sky News Pulse / YouGov poll, just 14 per cent of Australians believe the country is secure from realistic external threats.

Almost nine in 10 voters warned the country was either already vulnerable to external threats or may not remain safe for long.

Half of voters said Australia was “fairly secure now”, but feared that may not remain the case in the future.

A further 36 per cent said Australia was “not secure” and the country urgently needed to do more to protect itself.

The findings come as the Australian Strategic Policy Institute released research about China’s expansion of its defence and security footprint across the Pacific and Indian Ocean.

ASPI’s “Pressure Points” project warned Beijing has expanded its “access, presence and influence” across the Indo-Pacific region.

Director of the ASPI Defence Strategy Program Mike Hughes told SkyNews.com.au that the latest polling showed there was significant concerns about national security.

“Findings that almost 90 per cent of Australians polled are concerned that we are either insecure now or may be in the future highlights a public that is aware that global instability makes Australia less safe, secure and stable,” he said.

“The message is that there is social license for governments to both keep the public aware of the threats facing Australia, develop measures in defence of the nation and improve those international partnerships that will strengthen collective security.”

Mr Hughes noted the national security fears come as China had “increased its aggression against democracies” in the region.

“The likelihood of the Australian homeland being attacked militarily is low, but that shouldn’t be the prism through which Australia’s national security is viewed and assessed,” he said.

“As the ASPI Pressure Points project has revealed, China has increased its aggression against democracies across the Pacific and Indian oceans, within the South China Sea and against Taiwan, all of which makes Australia’s region less stable and secure.”

Mr Hughes said China had developed “a pattern of engagement” which combined military power, paramilitary forces, policing cooperation and civilian capabilities.

“Too often democracies assess those activities, often described as hybrid or grey-zone, as below acts of war and struggle to deter them,” he said.

“But together, those tools enable China to build familiarity with operating environments, normalise its presence and pursue strategic objectives far from home waters.”

Mr Hughes also warned Australia was not immune from instability overseas, even if it was not involved in conflict.

“As we have seen from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East, international incidents impact Australia regardless of how far away they are. A regional crisis would even more severely disrupt our economy and way of life,” he said.

The ASPI report on China, authored by Joe Keary, Dr Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan and Linus Cohen, has called for stronger regional partnerships and further investment to counter foreign influence.

“Across all three regions, China’s activity is becoming more regular, more capable and more geographically distributed,” it said.

“Naval task groups, CCG vessels, research platforms and maritime militia assets are increasingly operating alongside regional and partner forces.

“The result is a denser operating environment. Encounters that were once rare are becoming routine. Surveillance, shadowing and signalling activities are no longer exceptional, but are becoming part of the baseline.

“That reduces warning time, increases the complexity of day-to-day operations and raises the risk of miscalculation.”

In order to improve national security, Australia must work with India, Japan and the United States to “collectively step up through minilateral initiatives”, it adds.

The report’s authors also outline the need for stronger regional partnerships and frameworks, greater regional presence, investment in resilience and competition through economic and technological statecraft.