Two Melbourne war memorials have been vandalised on the eve of Anzac Day, sparking widespread outrage.
The Answering the Call statue in Port Melbourne commemorating the country's sailor servicemen and women, was defaced with anti-war slogans early Friday morning.
'No war 4 Aus' was sprayed at the foot of the statue, which was covered from head to toe in red paint.
The Centenary Bridge pylon at the nearby Station Pier was also vandalised in red paint with the tag 'No warships 4 AUKUS.'
A nearby fence at the pier was also targeted with the slogan 'US Empire = Death'.
When police arrived, council workers were already hard at work cleaning up the mess ahead of Saturday's Anzac Day commemorations.
Community leaders have slammed the attacks.
'It's just disgusting behaviour,' Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said.
The Answering the Call statue in Port Melbourne was defaced with anti-war slogans
The Centenary Bridge pylon at the nearby Station Pier was also vandalised early Friday
Port Phillip Mayor Alex Makin added: 'This desecration is especially disappointing as ANZAC Day is not about glorifying war.'
'It's about coming together to pay our respects to those who served in wars, conflicts and peacekeeping operations - including those who never returned.'
Days earlier, Defence Minister Richard Marles visited the site with his Japanese counterpart Shinjiro Koizumi to announce that Mitsubishi Heavy Industries will build three Mogami-design warships for Australia.
The Liberal Opposition has vowed to increase the punishment for those who vandalise war monuments if they're elected at the state election later this year.
Vandals would be billed for the graffiti removal and face up to 10 years behind bars.
'The increasing vandalism of war memorials and other cultural and historic sites is intolerable, and my Liberal and Nationals team has a plan to crack down on this disgraceful behaviour,' Opposition Leader Jess Wilson said.
3AW breakfast host Tom Elliott said that the incident goes against the entire purpose of why war memorials exist.
'The fact that they’re scrawling anti-war messages - war memorials to the dead are not a pro-war message. They’re meant to be an anti-war message,' he told listeners.
Council workers spent the day removing the graffiti from the monuments
The vandalism unfolded hours before millions of Melburnians head to Anzac Day commemorations across the city
But Elliott questioned whether the Victorian Opposition's proposed laws would make a difference.
'But the problem is that there’s no minimum penalty so the kind-hearted magistrate could clearly give no time in jail and probably would,' he said.
The police investigation into the vandalism continues.
Anyone who witnessed the incidents or has footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
It comes after brazen vandals posted online videos of graffiti attacks on other war monuments last week.
One video showed the vandals tagging two monuments in Moonee Ponds with the message: 'F**k the Anzacs and all 'Australian' servicemen before and since.'
More slogans painted on the statues read 'Death to the ADF' and 'Land Back'.