Blackstone
Brigadier
The bottom line is some kind of accommodation needs to be discussed between Presidents Obama and Xi; the temperature is getting too hot and both sides should look at new models of major country relations.
Actually, I've been following Hugh White for years, and his objective isn't debate on Australian weapon platforms, rather he wants US to share power with China to avoid great power conflicts. I highly recommend White's book, The China Choice, it's an excellent read.I agree with you, but I also think he makes a good point in effectively suggesting that Australia needs to seriously assess what kind of strategy it wants, and against whom.
I feel like Hugh White, in his write ups, is effectively begging the Australian govt to just outright say China so they can have a proper debate about what kinds of weapons they need...
Yes, but the calculus for Australia is much different now. In the past, Australia's main economic partners were Europe and the US, it's security was first guaranteed by Britain, and then by the US after WWII. Fast forward to today, we still have Australia under US security blanket, but it's biggest trading partner now, by far, is China. Does it mean it would choose one over the other? No one knows for sure, but we all saw how fast Prime Minister Abbott shot down B-1 basing in Australia the moment the topic went public. I guess what I'm trying to say is Australia's national interests are more difficult and less clear cut today than in the past, and it will do it's very best to walk a thin line between being an ally of the US and a "friend" with China.Let's not get into direct war scenarios, okay? It's against SD rules in any case.
The fact is, overall security concerns should not be driven by a few islands in the SCS in any case.
The overall need for maritime security is much broader than that, and Australia has always stood with several nations to achieve those security needs, with all providing mutual support towards national interests.
There is no way Australia will go the way Malcom Fraser wished. Australia will always stay in the Anglo-Saxon gang unless the US degenerates into a Soviet Union-esque condition, leaving Australia to fend for itself.
A nice exercise in the area where this is actually useful.Australian and Indian Navy Maritime Exercises AUSINDEX 2015