Writer
Dr Mike Gilligan
Dr Mike Gilligan worked for 20 years in defence policy and evaluating military proposals for development, including time in the Pentagon on military balances in Asia.
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We are useful idiots for the US war industry and its followers in Australia
America believes that it should run the world unchallenged in all dimensions of statehood. Continue reading »
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How defence will ruin Australia
China has no interest in attacking Australia. But once America ensconces its B52 strike aircraft at Tindal, Australia perforce becomes a hot target for missile attack. Protection for Tindal will be an imperative, requiring Iron Dome technology, at vast cost without certainty. No financial provision exists for ballistic missile defence at Tindal. Continue reading »
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Why Labor can’t be trusted with Australia’s security. It started with US Marines in Darwin
Basing nuclear capable B52 bombers at the Tindal airbase is an abrupt, unambiguous sign that our government believes it is Australia’s interest for China to feel threatened with American nuclear strike from our soil. At America’s pleasure. Continue reading »
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Let’s not miss the basics in the Defence Strategic Review
It’s time to inter the Hollywood ANZUS which has deceived Australians into believing a US security guarantee is necessary and unquestioningly available should we be attacked. Continue reading »
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The Defence Strategic Review: AUKUS is the wrong submarine for Australian needs
Any new submarine for defending Australia should be built around our experience. Our needs are idiosyncratic. The Defence Strategic Review should find that Australia’s defence interests would be served only by a new submarine designed for Australia’s peculiar northern waters. If we cannot have submarines designed for our conditions, the platform should be removed from Continue reading »
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Defence Strategic Review – Is defending Australia dead?
The last decade of Australia’s defence policy has swung from successful focus on our own defence, by ourself, to one heavily influenced by the US strategic determination to dominate China militarily. Thereby conservative governments have invited risk to our nation needlessly and been wrong-headed enough to subsidise it. Continue reading »
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The Defence Strategic Review: Understanding Australia’s existing defence capability is critical
At this time, Australia should be able to rely on its own defence of the nation’s sea and air approaches, operating from infrastructure here. We have no reason to require US armed intervention for our security. That is a significant milestone coming after some fifty years of single-minded capital and activity programs. An example of Continue reading »
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The Defence Strategic Review: The Hollywood version of ANZUS
It is highly unlikely that China would threaten Australian territory unless we become enmeshed in containment by the US. Continue reading »
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Our Air Force is already ‘operating against China’
Australia is seemingly as eager as ever to be pushed out on a plank by our American friends, professionally. Ever the faithful “patsy”. Continue reading »
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Australia’s defence strategic review – facts and fallacies
In preparation for the Defence Strategic Review the government has not informed Australians of any threat which challenges our security, much less a spectrum of them up to “most concerning”. Continue reading »
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Deceiving cabinet colleagues on submarines? Surely not
Which Australian Defence Minister convinced the Hawke Cabinet to create a submarine production industry at Port Adelaide with no commercial prospects, its product being of only marginal benefit to our defence, with zero local construction expertise, at extraordinary cost to taxpayers yet available economically elsewhere – while obscuring the finding by his Department that submarines Continue reading »
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Our Defence Minister spurns realism, imperilling Australia
Behind the militarese the professionals know this means that Australia will cough up as much money and forces as necessary to fight China in a high-intensity war on China’s doorstep. Continue reading »
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It’s time – for a top-down review of defence
Labor has a big reputation to protect on defence reform. At historic turning points in Australia’s security it was mostly Labor governments which turned up and delivered. Continue reading »
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Oh, for a Prime Minister honest about Australia’s security
How did it come to this? Australia’s defence policy has been baldly sacrificed to US interests via AUKUS with little public discourse. Continue reading »
