The operations undertaken by the 9th Division during the Huon Peninsula campaign were the largest by the Australian Army to that point of the war. Backed up by significant industrial resources which provided them with a significant technological edge over the Japanese, the Australian campaign destroyed what offensive capabilities the Japanese had in the region, and enabled them to gain control of vital sea lanes of communication and airfields that furthered their ability to conduct offensive operations in north-western New Guinea and New Britain. After the capture of Sio, on 21 January 1944 the 9th Division handed over to the 5th Division. The 5th Division was a Militia formation and its take over was part of the wider Australian plan to re-allocate the veteran divisions of the 2nd AIF to more intense operations elsewhere, namely the Philippines, while using the less experienced Militia formations to undertake the lower intensity work required to mop-up isolated pockets of Japanese resistance. In the event, the 9th Division was precluded from taking part in the fighting in the Philippines due to inter-Allied politics, and it was subsequently employed in Borneo in 1945. Meanwhile, one of the 5th Division's component formations, the 8th Brigade, conducted mopping up operations around Sio throughout January into February and March 1944. They also effected a link up with US forces around Saidor.