Australia's Navy chief has warned that Russia's military will "significantly" increase its influence in this region over the next few years, as former Soviet figures in Moscow try to re-establish the nation's once-powerful Cold War position.

In a wide-ranging address to the Lowy Institute, Vice Admiral Tim Barrett reflected on the Russian Navy's deployment of four warships near Australia last year, ahead of the G20 summit in Brisbane.

"I think there was a message. Clearly that message from a purely naval perspective would be a demonstration that the Russian Navy can still deploy, can still sustain itself on deployment, and still has reach," Admiral Barrett said.

"I think there's a clear demonstration that the Soviets of the past still have a view, amongst those in Russia, that would indicate that Russia still has a position in the world that they would seek to re-establish.

"From our own perspective we will see more engagement with the Russians in our part of the world.

"It might not be in the Coral Sea but we might find ourselves as we .... spend time in the South China Sea.

"As we have done and will continue to do, I think we might find ourselves passing more Russian ships than we would have in the past 10 years, and I imagine that will increase significantly."

The Royal Australian Navy chief's comments come on the same day a Lowy Institute report warned "Russia's ambitious decision to 'rebalance' its strategic orientation towards Asia is going relatively unnoticed, yet has the potential to generate significant regional effects".

According to the report, Moscow is "engaging in a large-scale military modernisation project with the intention of projecting power into Asia" and "its relationship with China seems to have deepened considerably".

The document concludes that "Canberra should consider a limited and certain re-engagement with Moscow" to "protect Australian interests while also potentially nudging Russia towards a more balanced and constructive posture in regional affairs".