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Australia Agrees to Missile Defense Role
Australia has agreed to participate in a U.S. program to build a defensive missile shield, the government announced Thursday. ``We believe that taking part in the U.S. program will serve our strategic interest, help us defend Australia and allow us to make an important contribution to global and regional security,ââ Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in a statement.
| "It'll also be real handy if North Korea decides to turn us into a sea of fire..." |
Washington hopes to develop a shield against ballistic missiles, arguing that ``rogue statesââ like North Korea could soon have missiles to threaten the United States. It wants allies like Britain and Australia involved in the project, particularly for the use of satellite tracking stations in their countries.
| Wouldn't hurt to have a few launch sites, either, I'd think... |
Canada announced in May that it had entered formal talks with Washington about joining the program. It was not immediately clear what other countries - if any - have committed to playing a role.
| 'Bout damn time! I worry about Yellowknife. When's Jean departing, again? |
Downer told Parliament that ``several lunatic countries in unstable regionsââ are developing ballistic missiles that in some cases would have the ability to carry weapons of mass destruction. Critics says the technology for such shields is complex, unreliable and expensive. Worse, they say, the plans could spark a new arms race.
Wow, Sean Penn is such a genius on so many things!
Australia has been one of Washingtonâs staunchest allies over the past hundred several years, pledging troops to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and stating clearly that its relationship with the United States is central to nationâs long-term interests.
| New Zealand used to be that way, too. Maybe someday they'll be back in the fold... |
Downer said the nature of Australiaâs participation ``will depend on many factors including our own strategic defense needs, regional considerations, industry capabilities and financial considerations.ââ Defense Minister Robert Hill said Canberra will likely help in research for the multibillion dollar project and has no plans for a ground-based missile defense system on Australian soil.
| Gonna put it on ships? Or are we working on satellite coverage? |
``We have given that careful consideration and we think that we can play a part, obviously a small part in terms of the massive overall program,ââ Hill told reporters.
| "Australia has a business community, too, and there's no reason some of the money shouldn't come our way..." |
``We think that with the proliferation of long-range missiles and trends toward proliferation of mass destruction warheads, it is a sensible decision for Australia to take.ââ
Aussies. We owe each of âem a beer.
| Shows good sense on their part. It's going to take years before the system's developed, debugged, and in place. While that's under way, the Bad Guys are going to be working hard to spread nukes to even more unstable states. Australia's within range of China, NKor, India, and Pakland, all of whom have nuclear weapons and two of which have a heavy concentration of lunatics close to the trigger. Ten years from now that list could be longer, and twenty years from now longer yet, until eventually you have to worry about whether there are fanatics about to come to power in the Comoros or Madagascar or Pitcairn Island. The longer it is before you start, the longer before you finish. |
Posted by: Steve White 2003-12-04 |
