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| Down Under |
| Australia defends alliance with U.S |
| 2005-05-06 |
| Australia on Thursday defended its alliance with the United States, saying it would add value to Canberra's engagement in Asia, where some countries have been critical of the 50-year-old partnership. "From time to time you will hear, in the Australian debate, the suggestion that our alliance costs us in our region -- that we should start to distance ourselves -- or to "avoiding having to choose" -- between the United States and Asia," Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in Washington. "In my view, that is a distorted view. It posits a false choice," he said in a lecture hosted by the Center for Australian and New Zealand Studies at Georgetown University and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. On the contrary, Downer said, the alliance added value to Australia's engagement with the region. "It contributes directly to our own security. But it also adds to our strategic weight and capability edge in the region, and our ability to protect and advance our interests," he said. Some Southeast Asian nations fear Australia's pre-emptive strike principle as part of the US-led global "war on terror" could be used to mount an attack within their territories without their permission. The pre-emptive strike policy was seen as emulating the doctrine of President George W. Bush that led to the Iraqi invasion in 2003, and some Asian nations have argued it was further evidence Australia saw itself in the company of the United States and was not identifying with the Asian region. Particularly concerned over this, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has asked Australia to sign a nonaggression pact with the grouping as a condition for joining an East Asian Summit it would host at the end of 2005. Asked by reporters whether Australia would accede to ASEAN's Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, Downer said: "Well, it is something that we are thinking about. "I have some officials who will in the next few weeks be talking with a number of their counterparts in ASEAN and when I get a report back from them, the Prime Minister and I will sit down and we'll have a look at their report and we'll see," Downer said. The 1976 treaty prohibits the use of force in the settlement of disputes and contains a principle about non-interference in the internal affairs of other signatory states. The other countries to be invited to the East Asian Summit by ASEAN are China, Japan, South Korea and India. They have all previously signed the treaty. New Zealand, another potential participant, said it would probably sign the agreement. Downer defended the US-Australia political and security alliance, saying its neighbouring Southeast Asian and other nations could benefit from the partnership, which he stressed was "not a zero-sum game." He explained that the training, technology and intelligence Australia accessed through the alliance could help bring relief to neighbours in times of great humanitarian crisis -- as demonstrated in the December 26 tsunami that wreaked havoc in the region. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Downer said that ultimately an alliance rested on friendship and a "preparedness to stand by one's mates no matter how tough the going gets. "It reminds us that sometimes security at home can only be gained by taking the fight to our enemies wherever they are," he said. Downer added that information gained from operations in Afghanistan was used to thwart plans by Jemaah Islamiyah, Al-Qaeda's Southeast Asian chapter, to bomb the Australian, American and British missions in Singapore in December. |
| Posted by:God Save The World |
| #4 ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Gee...I'm sure these guys would just jump to Australia's aid in the event of an attack... |
| Posted by: Witt 2005-05-06 22:30 |
| #3 No, but he does get to drive the D-9 that knocks it down... |
| Posted by: Pappy 2005-05-06 20:30 |
| #2 Works for me. So he gets to turn out the lights? |
| Posted by: .com 2005-05-06 11:09 |
| #1 Next. Secretary. General. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-05-06 11:07 |