Rudd: The Master of Grand Announcements
On May 2, 2009, the Rudd government published a white paper outlining a twenty year, $74 billion plan to revitalize the Australian navy so that it could be well prepared for the future and capable of thwarting other regional adversaries mainly Chinese.
Yes, Australia needs to augment its defence forces and keep its powder dry, but the thinking and assumption of the white paper needs questioning. Scratch under the surface as you can see the glaring holes. As per the plan, Rudd wants the Australian Navy to have 100 joint strike fighters, 12 maybe more submarines, 11 more effective surface combatants, and 20 of a new class of small ship designed for multiple roles. What he failed to tell the nation is that Australian Navy faces major staff shortages – 27% yearly recruitment shortfall with 11% of staff quitting the service each year. The Navy is under pressure and is not able to fully staff even the existing 6 submarines and helicopters. Just last year the Defence Department had ordered a 2 month shutdown from 3 December to 3 February and forced Naval personnel to go on forced leave as a desperate measure to deal with staff shortages. This massive 74 billion dollar injection plan in purchasing defence equipment appears to be at odds with the existing staffing of defence personnel.
What is also incomprehensible is the order given by the Prime Minister to his Defence Minister Joel Fitzberg to find 20 billion dollars in savings in his area. Can you find cost savings of the order of a 20 billion dollars in a period of 10 years? Even if you hire one of the best management consultants in the world, savings of this order appear unrealistic. And that too in current times when Australia is fighting wars and its engagements have been stretched to the maximum limit since World War II. Expecting this from a Minister whose own departmental colleagues are spying on him and may never cooperate in full with him, is stretching optimism to limits.
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith, in a speech delivered to Confederation of Indian Industries in Chennai in September, last year said, “Australia is firmly focused on the Asia Pacific region. On coming to office last year, the Government made it clear that comprehensive engagement with Asia and the Pacific would be one pillar of our foreign policy.” What a change of direction? China is building a nuclear submarine base about 1200 nautical miles off Straits of Malacca, constructing a sea port at Gwadar in Pakistan, installing a radar facility at Coco islands in Myanmar and building of an airport at Humban Tota in Sri Lanka. China not only is a danger to Australia, but also is a threat to other neighbouring economies of India, Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. Apart from the strategic Strait of Malacca, the other important three straits – Sunda-Banka, Lombok-Makassar and Ombai-Wetar are all present in Indonesian islands. A strategic direction would have been to engage all these countries including Indonesia and build a broader alliance.
Rudd rhetoric is at work again
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Mick Keelty: His Masters Voice
Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty will retire from the Australian Federal Police Commissioner
in September after 35 years in service. Recipient of Indonesia’s highest policing award in 2003, Keelty messed up the investigations related to Indian doctor Mohammed Haneef and instead of applying an independent mind, bowed to the pressure of the former John Howard government and acted as an impediment in getting justice for Mohammed Haneef.
He was one man who could have stood up to the injustice being delivered to Mohammed Haneef, and he failed.
The bikie gang assault at Australia’s most secure airport also occurred during Mick Keelty’s reign.
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