Australia to participate in US missile defence program

Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill announced
today.

Senator Hill said Australia was working with the US to determine the
most appropriate forms of Australian participation that will not only be
in our strategic defence interests but also provide maximum
opportunities for Australian industry.

These could include:
* Expanded cooperation to help detect missiles at the point of launch
and therefore get early warning of an impending attack.
* Acquisition of, or other cooperation in the fields of, ship-based and
ground-based sensors.
* Science and technology research development, testing and evaluation.
Senator Hill said the missile defence program was a non-nuclear
defensive system that did not threaten other countries. Its purpose was
to be able to negate a ballistic missile threat and therefore discourage
other countries from investing in ballistic missile systems.

Defence Update 2003, released in February, foreshadowed the increasing
importance of missile defence in the 21st century.

"The Government is concerned that Australia might one day be threatened
by long range missiles with mass destruction effect and believes that
investment in defensive measures is important," Senator Hill said.

"Developing this capability will contribute to global, regional and
Australia security by offering protection from missile attack and
dissuading nations from acquiring or developing such weapons.

"There will also be opportunities for Australian industry. Our decision
last year to invest in the systems development and demonstration phase
of the Joint Strike Fighter program is already paying dividends, with
nine contracts awarded to Australian companies to date. There is the
potential for similar benefits from our involvement in the missile
defence program."

Australia has had a long involvement in missile defence through hosting
a ballistic missile early warning ground station for 29 years as the
Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar and now as the relay ground station at
Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.

"David Bromage" wrote in message
.. .
Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill announced
today.

Senator Hill said Australia was working with the US to determine the
most appropriate forms of Australian participation that will not only be
in our strategic defence interests but also provide maximum
opportunities for Australian industry.

These could include:
* Expanded cooperation to help detect missiles at the point of launch
and therefore get early warning of an impending attack.
* Acquisition of, or other cooperation in the fields of, ship-based and
ground-based sensors.
* Science and technology research development, testing and evaluation.
Senator Hill said the missile defence program was a non-nuclear
defensive system that did not threaten other countries. Its purpose was
to be able to negate a ballistic missile threat and therefore discourage
other countries from investing in ballistic missile systems.

Defence Update 2003, released in February, foreshadowed the increasing
importance of missile defence in the 21st century.

"The Government is concerned that Australia might one day be threatened
by long range missiles with mass destruction effect and believes that
investment in defensive measures is important," Senator Hill said.

"Developing this capability will contribute to global, regional and
Australia security by offering protection from missile attack and
dissuading nations from acquiring or developing such weapons.

"There will also be opportunities for Australian industry. Our decision
last year to invest in the systems development and demonstration phase
of the Joint Strike Fighter program is already paying dividends, with
nine contracts awarded to Australian companies to date. There is the
potential for similar benefits from our involvement in the missile
defence program."

Australia has had a long involvement in missile defence through hosting
a ballistic missile early warning ground station for 29 years as the
Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar and now as the relay ground station at
Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.


It's not the nuke attached to an ICBM that I'm worried about. It's the one
delivered to the centre of Sydney in the back of a beat up old white Toyota
Hiace van that concerns me.

In article ,
says...
"David Bromage" wrote in message
.. .
Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill announced
today.

Senator Hill said Australia was working with the US to determine the
most appropriate forms of Australian participation that will not only be
in our strategic defence interests but also provide maximum
opportunities for Australian industry.

These could include:
* Expanded cooperation to help detect missiles at the point of launch
and therefore get early warning of an impending attack.
* Acquisition of, or other cooperation in the fields of, ship-based and
ground-based sensors.
* Science and technology research development, testing and evaluation.
Senator Hill said the missile defence program was a non-nuclear
defensive system that did not threaten other countries. Its purpose was
to be able to negate a ballistic missile threat and therefore discourage
other countries from investing in ballistic missile systems.

Defence Update 2003, released in February, foreshadowed the increasing
importance of missile defence in the 21st century.

"The Government is concerned that Australia might one day be threatened
by long range missiles with mass destruction effect and believes that
investment in defensive measures is important," Senator Hill said.

"Developing this capability will contribute to global, regional and
Australia security by offering protection from missile attack and
dissuading nations from acquiring or developing such weapons.

"There will also be opportunities for Australian industry. Our decision
last year to invest in the systems development and demonstration phase
of the Joint Strike Fighter program is already paying dividends, with
nine contracts awarded to Australian companies to date. There is the
potential for similar benefits from our involvement in the missile
defence program."

Australia has had a long involvement in missile defence through hosting
a ballistic missile early warning ground station for 29 years as the
Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar and now as the relay ground station at
Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.


It's not the nuke attached to an ICBM that I'm worried about. It's the one
delivered to the centre of Sydney in the back of a beat up old white Toyota
Hiace van that concerns me.






Still no reason to ignore the ICBM threat. Just means that we have to
also check out for you that old white Toyota Hiace van.

--
Intelligence does not imply reason or purpose

17th saying of Bernard

"David Bromage" wrote in message
.. .
Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the
United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill
announced
today.


What are the emrging threats to Australia in regards to ICBMs.

I can only think of the mad dog of the region Nth Korea and our
involvement as US allie.



Senator Hill said Australia was working with the US to determine the
most appropriate forms of Australian participation that will not
only be
in our strategic defence interests but also provide maximum
opportunities for Australian industry.

These could include:
* Expanded cooperation to help detect missiles at the point of
launch
and therefore get early warning of an impending attack.
* Acquisition of, or other cooperation in the fields of, ship-based
and
ground-based sensors.
* Science and technology research development, testing and
evaluation.
Senator Hill said the missile defence program was a non-nuclear
defensive system that did not threaten other countries. Its purpose
was
to be able to negate a ballistic missile threat and therefore
discourage
other countries from investing in ballistic missile systems.

Defence Update 2003, released in February, foreshadowed the
increasing
importance of missile defence in the 21st century.

"The Government is concerned that Australia might one day be
threatened
by long range missiles with mass destruction effect and believes
that
investment in defensive measures is important," Senator Hill said.

"Developing this capability will contribute to global, regional and
Australia security by offering protection from missile attack and
dissuading nations from acquiring or developing such weapons.

"There will also be opportunities for Australian industry. Our
decision
last year to invest in the systems development and demonstration
phase
of the Joint Strike Fighter program is already paying dividends,
with
nine contracts awarded to Australian companies to date. There is
the
potential for similar benefits from our involvement in the missile
defence program."

Australia has had a long involvement in missile defence through
hosting
a ballistic missile early warning ground station for 29 years as the
Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar and now as the relay ground station
at
Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.

In article ,
"The Enlightenment" wrote:

What are the emrging threats to Australia in regards to ICBMs.

I can only think of the mad dog of the region Nth Korea and our
involvement as US allie.

....and China.

....and Iran.

....and all of the rest of those wonderful people in your hemisphere.

(And if you don't think of China as a standalone threat in the future,
you haven't been paying attention)

--
cirby at cfl.rr.com

Remember: Objects in rearview mirror may be hallucinations.
Slam on brakes accordingly.

The best way to deter those ICBMs is to have a few of your own. Since
it is pretty easy to trace the incoming ICBMs, there is no question as
to who to nuke. Since few like to be turned into toast, the odds of
the enemy launching are pretty slim.

Now the smuggled bomb is another story.

Bernardz wrote in message news:MPG.1a39c03d15838be498977e@news...
In article ,
says...
"David Bromage" wrote in message
.. .
Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill announced
today.

Senator Hill said Australia was working with the US to determine the
most appropriate forms of Australian participation that will not only be
in our strategic defence interests but also provide maximum
opportunities for Australian industry.

These could include:
* Expanded cooperation to help detect missiles at the point of launch
and therefore get early warning of an impending attack.
* Acquisition of, or other cooperation in the fields of, ship-based and
ground-based sensors.
* Science and technology research development, testing and evaluation.
Senator Hill said the missile defence program was a non-nuclear
defensive system that did not threaten other countries. Its purpose was
to be able to negate a ballistic missile threat and therefore discourage
other countries from investing in ballistic missile systems.

Defence Update 2003, released in February, foreshadowed the increasing
importance of missile defence in the 21st century.

"The Government is concerned that Australia might one day be threatened
by long range missiles with mass destruction effect and believes that
investment in defensive measures is important," Senator Hill said.

"Developing this capability will contribute to global, regional and
Australia security by offering protection from missile attack and
dissuading nations from acquiring or developing such weapons.

"There will also be opportunities for Australian industry. Our decision
last year to invest in the systems development and demonstration phase
of the Joint Strike Fighter program is already paying dividends, with
nine contracts awarded to Australian companies to date. There is the
potential for similar benefits from our involvement in the missile
defence program."

Australia has had a long involvement in missile defence through hosting
a ballistic missile early warning ground station for 29 years as the
Joint Defence Facility Nurrungar and now as the relay ground station at
Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.


It's not the nuke attached to an ICBM that I'm worried about. It's the one
delivered to the centre of Sydney in the back of a beat up old white Toyota
Hiace van that concerns me.






Still no reason to ignore the ICBM threat. Just means that we have to
also check out for you that old white Toyota Hiace van.

Hobo wrote:

Even worse, imagine a bunch of people in a basement working on a gun
device nuke. When ready they set a timer and leave the city. If the
device doesn't work they return to make ready a second attempt and keep
doing so until they succeed.

Anyone with the resources to get a big chunk of fissionable material
shouldn't have to muck around too much with making it work.

The world has been really fortunate that most of the really nasty folks
- the sort that would happily detonate such a weapon - are too dim to
manage something that complicated.

Our first warning that a terror organization has a big chunk of
fissionable material will probably be radiation detectors going off well
downwind from an accidental critical mass.

--
cirby at cfl.rr.com

Remember: Objects in rearview mirror may be hallucinations.
Slam on brakes accordingly.

Hobo wrote:
In article ,
"Matt B" wrote:


It's not the nuke attached to an ICBM that I'm worried about. It's
the one delivered to the centre of Sydney in the back of a beat up
old white Toyota Hiace van that concerns me.

Even worse, imagine a bunch of people in a basement working on a gun
device nuke. When ready they set a timer and leave the city. If the
device doesn't work they return to make ready a second attempt and
keep doing so until they succeed.

If a gun device fails, I'd expect to see the bits blown over a fairly wide
area. Any random group of terrorists should be able to manage the
electronics for a gun fission weapon, so it's nearly impossible to imagine
the explosive not firing. After that, you simply have varying degrees of
fizzle.

--
Tom Schoene Replace "invalid" with "net" to e-mail
"If brave men and women never died, there would be nothing
special about bravery." -- Andy Rooney (attributed)

On Fri, 05 Dec 2003 21:13:10 GMT, "Thomas Schoene"
wrote:

Hobo wrote:
In article ,
"Matt B" wrote:


It's not the nuke attached to an ICBM that I'm worried about. It's
the one delivered to the centre of Sydney in the back of a beat up
old white Toyota Hiace van that concerns me.

Even worse, imagine a bunch of people in a basement working on a gun
device nuke. When ready they set a timer and leave the city. If the
device doesn't work they return to make ready a second attempt and
keep doing so until they succeed.

If a gun device fails, I'd expect to see the bits blown over a fairly wide
area. Any random group of terrorists should be able to manage the
electronics for a gun fission weapon, so it's nearly impossible to imagine
the explosive not firing. After that, you simply have varying degrees of
fizzle.


Why fizzle? No convenient neutron source to kick start it?

"The Enlightenment" wrote in message
...

"David Bromage" wrote in message
.. .
Thursday, 4 December 2003
153/2003

AUSTRALIA TO PARTICIPATE IN US MISSILE DEFENCE PROGRAM

The Government has decided that Australia will participate in the
United
States' missile defence program, Defence Minister Robert Hill
announced
today.


What are the emrging threats to Australia in regards to ICBMs.

I can only think of the mad dog of the region Nth Korea and our
involvement as US allie.

You seem to be forgetting the fact that we are already off N Koreas Xmas
card list for being so rude as to use our military to prevent the delivery
of large amounts of reasonably priced heroin here.