Fed: No need for Australia to buy own missile defence

AAP General News (Australia)
04-15-2004
Fed: No need for Australia to buy own missile defence

CANBERRA, April 15 AAP - Australia should continue to help the United States track
missiles through Pine Gap, rather than going it alone or scrapping the cooperation altogether,
a strategic research paper says.

Setting up our own missile defence capability made no sense and restricting the existing
program could put the Australia-US alliance in jeopardy, the Australian Strategic Policy
Institute said in its latest strategic insight paper.

But Australia needed to consider whether a scaled-up US missile shield would lead to
other states, such as China, developing more nuclear weapons, former defence department
analyst Richard Brabin-Smith said.

"Whether we like it or not, there are high levels of commitment in the US, by both
the Republican and Democrat parties, to develop defences against attack by ballistic missiles,"

Dr Brabin-Smith wrote.

He said Australia had three choices - to continue with intelligence cooperation through
Pine Gap and the Australia-US relationship, to restrict or stop what Australia was already
doing, or to move now to acquire its own missile defence capability.

But it was barely conceivable that Australia would restrict the use of the data to
its original purpose of only warning about massive intercontinental ballistic missile
(ICBM) attacks, he said.

"This would mean that we would not tell the US - or anyone else distant from the launch
point - that their citizens and cities were under attack even by a few missiles," Dr Brabin-Smith
said.

And there was little purpose in Australia setting up its own nuclear shield.

"No matter who (is) the next President, the US will continue to develop systems to
protect its homeland, allies and deployed forces from attack by ballistic missiles," Dr
Brabin-Smith said.

"The most persuasive option for Australia is to continue with our intelligence relationship
and the use of (the Pine Gap) data to give alert and initial tracking."

Both Prime Minister John Howard and Opposition Leader Mark Latham have pledged to continue
Australia's cooperation with the United States through Pine Gap.

AAP mfh/sb/jv/de

KEYWORD: MISSILE

2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.