Rudd calls for naval expansion in response to Asian arms race

Melbourne, Sept 10 (PTI) In response to counter military
build-up flagged by Asia's growing economy, Australian Prime
Minister Kevin Rudd has called for a dramatic expansion of the
Royal Australian Navy.

Rudd Tuesday said that Asian nations were modernising
their military forces, particularly with more powerful jet
fighters and submarines, and that Australia must respond with
its own upgradation.

In a warning to national congress of Returned and
Services League (R.S.L.), Rudd said he wanted to use
Australia's status as "a middle power" to promote
comprehensive diplomatic engagement within the region and
through U.N. as a buffer against regional rivalries, according
to 'The Australian' report Wednesday.

"We see a substantial arms build-up over time," Rudd said
adding "We need to be aware of the changes taking place. And
we must make sure that we have the right mix of capabilities
to deal with any contingencies that might arise in the
future."

Even if Rudd did not name any particular nation as posing
a specific military threat, Australian and U.S. intelligence
agencies were known to be wary of the growing economic might
of China and India.

And they have lately warned that China is building an
underground naval base at Sanya, on Hainan Island, off its
southern coast, with berths for up to 20 advanced nuclear
submarines. It is believed there are a further 13 nuclear
submarines in the planning stages.

Last night, Rudd told R.S.L. that the Asia-Pacific region
was so dynamic and included so many "flashpoints" that
Australia could not bank on never-ending regional cooperation.

"The Asia-Pacific region will become more prosperous and
its population will continue to grow," he said adding that
"Militarily, however, as it has already become economically
and politically, the Asia-Pacific will become a much more
contested region."

By 2050, Australia's population would reach 35 million,
while China's would peak at 1.5 billion by 2020 and India's
would hit 1.8billion by the middle of the century.

"The demographic changes in our region will mean that by
2020, when we look to our north, we will see a very different
region to the one we see now - one where population, food,
water and energy resources pressures will be great. These
pressures would add to those around pre-existing political
fault lines, such as territorial disputes," he said.

"As a general observation, the modernisation of Asian
military forces is being characterised by significant
improvements in air combat capability, and naval forces,
including greater numbers and more advanced submarines" he
added.

Rudd said Australia must therefore look to its own
military resources and maintain a flexible land force able to
contribute to "high-end military engagements".

"We need an advanced naval capability that can protect
our sea lanes of communication and support our land forces as
they deploy. We need an air force that can fill support and
combat roles and can deter, defeat and provide assistance to
land and maritime forces" he said. PTI NC
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