Australia likely to agree to U.S. drones stationed on Cocos Islands

In 2014 there will be a new Defence White Paper…. The announcement of the intention to station drones on the Cocos Islands (without even consultation with local inhabitants) indicates that the depths of the forced generosity of the Australian people to US war planners are likely to be plumbed further.

US drones for Cocos Islands, Further steps to war, CPA, Bob Briton, 4 April 12, It was left to the US media to tell Australians about the war preparations being made above their heads by the Gillard Government. The Washington Post broke the story last week that US and Australian officials have been discussing the rapid expansion of the US militarypresence in South-East Asia and the Indian Ocean including the stationing of pilotless drones on the Cocos Islands. The move to the
Australian territory midway between Australia and Sri Lanka will
relieve congestion for US military aircraft on Diego Garcia – a
British island possession in the increasingly strategic Indian
Ocean……
The Australian media slavishly rehashed the US’s disinformation
campaign – a missile that could carry a satellite could just as easily
carry a nuclear weapon. The missile was to be launched in the
direction of Australia! US President Obama warned the DPRK of further,
crushing economic consequences if the tests were to proceed. Mission
accomplished – tensions in the region were increased and a country
refusing to tow the US economic and strategic line was further
isolated and punished.

The Cocos announcement was embarrassing and Defence Minister Stephen
Smith weighed in quickly to say that the plan was “long term”.
Opposition spokesman (and likely defence minister before too long)
David Johnston “absolutely supports” the proposal. “I am very keen
that we welcome the Americans in any shape or form that they want to
come and work with us in our region,” he told the ABC’s Lateline
program.

During Obama’s visit to Australia last November, Prime Minister
Gillard proudly declared Darwin would host a new base for 2,500 US
Marines and the transport of war fighting materiel. Prior to the
visit, the US had announced that it will have to cut military spending
worldwide and that its allies would have to take up the slack. New
tactics involving “lily pad” operations like that carried out in Libya
were the way of the future but the US needed more willing “partners”
for this new approach.

A Defence Posture Review released earlier this year showed just how
eager the Australian government is to help out. The military top brass
would like to see the following laid on for US forces:……
In 2014 there will be a new Defence White Paper. The last one,
released in 2009, saw Australian taxpayers committed to sharply
increased “defence” budgets and multi-billion dollar weapons
acquisitions like the Air Warship Destroyers with their $8 billion
price tag. The announcement of the intention to station drones on the Cocos Islands (without even consultation with local inhabitants) indicates that the depths of the forced generosity of the Australian people to US war planners are likely to be plumbed further.

Trouble with the neighbours

The justification for this dramatic build up is thin and
contradictory. Sometimes the development of a capability to respond to
increasingly dramatic natural disasters is emphasised. Sometimes the
need to secure trade routes from all sorts of sinister threats is put
front and centre. Increasingly, the need to defend Australia from an
un-named expansionist power is hinted at. The Defence Posture Review
cited above advances the idea that the resource-rich north of the
Australian continent needs to be defended, presumably from an invader
that, without a formidable deterrent, would simply descend on the
region of the country and steal its mineral wealth…..
Australia’s neighbours are not happy with developments. Many of them
have come under pressure to join the “contain” (i.e. confront and
ultimately dismember) China strategy of the US. The Philippines is
experiencing heavy persuasion to play host to US forces once more
following the closure of the Clark air force and Subic Bay naval
bases.

Indonesian Minister Marty Natalegawa phoned newly appointed Foreign
Minister Bob Carr recently to express his concerns that the Cocos
Islands spy plane proposal would “disturb the region”. An Indonesian
defence ministry spokesman Brigadier-General Hartind Asrin said, “If
we spot one and it has no permit, our fighter jets will intercept it”.

PM Julia Gillard and Foreign Minister Bob Carr will continue to ignore
such signals. They will press on and sacrifice relations with our near
neighbours and major trading partners at the altar of the US alliance.
Bob Carr is an enthusiast for all things American including its
particularly aggressive form of capitalism. He is well suited to his
new job……
According to all the polls taken on such matters, a solid majority of
the Australian population would prefer the federal government to cut
back on “defence” spending in the cause of US geo-political objectives
and for more to be spent on what they still consider are the core
responsibilities of the Australian government – health, education and
other aspects of social wellbeing. New groups are coming together
under the slogan “Keep War From Our Door – Wave of Hope”. They are
preparing protests for the Global Day of Action Against Military
Spending on April 17. These efforts deserve our full support.

To send a protest and expression of concern to Prime Minister Gillard
go to our section on peace for a pro-forma letter. ….
http://www.cpa.org.au/guardian/2012/1542/01-us-drones.html