Recent Australian government spending on naval vessels reveals the extent of United States influence over the Australian military. The decision to buy three Navantia-F100 destroyers was taken on the basis of compatibility of electronic warfare systems linking the Australian Navy to US systems.
Since the Howard coalition government took office in Canberra during the mid-1990s period, Australian defence spending has increased by 47 percent. The Howard government decision, amounting to $8 billion of military spending, provides Australia with a new generation of warfare destroyers which are intended to form the mainstay of the RAN combat fleet until at least 2040. While the Spanish-designed F100 vessels were considerably cheaper than other alternatives, the Defence Department was clearly more concerned about their electronic warfare systems being compatible with US systems.
The new destroyers are planned to use US-supplied Aegis combat systems together with other operational facilities. They will possess an array of sea-based defence systems including SM-3 missiles capable of intercepting enemy aircraft at a distance of more than 150 kilometres. Recent tests conducted by the Spanish Navy have already shown the ships to possess compatibility and be fully integrated into US Navy carrier battle groups. They will be made in Adelaide from 2009 by the Submarine Corporation, Raytheon and the Defence Materiel Organisation, and enter service in 2013.
Another $3 billion was committed on the purchase of two 27,000-tonne amphibious ships which will be made at Williamstown, Melbourne. The ships, HMAS Canberra and HMAS Adelaide, will be more than double the size of the vessels they are replacing. They have the capacity to be used for deployments far from Australian shores for lengthy periods of time. They possess facilities for carrying about a thousand troops together with logistical support including twelve helicopters, tanks, vehicles, artillery and fuel. The vessels will have the capacity to launch six helicopters simultaneously in combat situations, and also operate four armed water-craft. Other facilities include a fully equipped hospital with two operating theatres.
Aimed at China
It is all designed to ensure that Australia remains locked in as a loyal partner and willing collaborator with US militarisation of the Asia-Pacific region.
The so-called ‘War on Terror’ has provided the US with a convenient cover for militarism. Dennis Richardson, former head of the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), now Ambassador to the US, stated in March 2007 that this ‘War on Terror’ was “just beginning”.
But sophisticated missile destroyers and huge landing craft are intended for much bigger targets than terrorist cells and regional insurgents. One such target is obviously China.
A dangerous situation is developing in the Asia-Pacific region with increased tension as the US seeks to retain its hegemony and encircle and contain China.
US military spending
In late October, President Bush appealed to the US Congress for a larger military budget. The request, for a further $42 billion, has brought the total budget for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan this financial year to $190 billion, bringing the grand total to $462 billion.
The US failure in Iraq weighs heavily upon an economy in relative decline and the Bush administration with its ‘lame duck’ image. An OECD report published in September forecast US growth for the year would be 1.9 per cent, falling from projections of 2.1 per cent.
China growing strongly
By contrast, the Chinese economy continues to grow at a rapid rate. In the recent quarter to 30 September, Chinese economic growth rate was recorded as 11.5 per cent. Net profits for industrial organisations also recorded a 37 percent increase during the first eight months of the year. Gross domestic product, measured per head, has risen 169 percent in the period 2000-06.
The Asia-Pacific region is home to sixty per cent of the world population, and the most dynamic sector of the global economy. A rising tide of expectations has transformed many countries. The Asia Development Bank in recent reports, however, records more than 641 million people across the region living on less than $1 a day.
Only China has seriously tackled the problem of poverty reduction; in 1990 one in three lived in poverty, today the figure is one in ten. The country presents a formidable political and economic challenge to US hegemony across the Asia-Pacific region where poverty is commonplace.
In future decades the economic might of China will equal and eventually surpass the US. Despite statements to the contrary from Washington and the Pentagon, there appears little intention of accommodating China. The very nature of imperialism seeks to reduce the capacity of perceived competitors. The main thrust of the militarists, therefore, has been to contain and encircle the country by any means at their disposal.
Australia is being sucked into this aggressive game, with its military forces used as a reserve force for US imperialism. The chances of mutually beneficial trade and a peaceful, cooperative relationship with China are being put in jeopardy by subservience to the US global agenda.
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