The CCP ‘Does Not Share Our Values’: Shadow Australian Defence Minister Flags Militarisation Threat
The CCP ‘Does Not Share Our Values’: Shadow Australian Defence Minister Flags Militarisation Threat - ‘I think the militarisation we’re seeing of the Chinese Communist Party is real,’ Angus Taylor said.
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Australian Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor has flagged concerns about the militarisation of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The Liberal frontbencher warned that it was important not to forget that “authoritarian regimes” can threaten what Australians believe in, naming Russia, Iran, and the CCP.
“I think there’s a sense in Australia that we’re okay, that there'll never be these threats,” he said on 2GB on Aug. 15.
“But the truth is, authoritarian regimes do threaten us; and we’ve seen that with Russia, we’ve seen that with Iran, and frankly, we’re also seeing it with the CCP militarising it a pace that we haven’t seen before, and so we should never forget that these threats are real, and that we’ve got to be prepared.”
At the same time, Taylor conveyed support for trade with China.
“But the CCP does not share our values and we need to be realistic about the threat that is created. It’s the most dangerous time since the Second World War, since 15th of August 1945, and so we’ve got to get serious about being prepared for that.”
This assessment stated that China’s nuclear arsenal was growing “faster than any country’s” at a rate of approximately 100 new warheads per year.
Further, it states that Beijing is on the verge of completing the construction of 350 new ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile) silos.
“Depending on how it decides to structure its forces, China could potentially have at least as many ICBMs as either Russia or the USA by the turn of the decade,” the report states.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles has recently also flagged concerns about Beijing’s military build-up without strategic reassurance.
Australia ‘Not Ready’ For Conflict in the Pacific
Taylor also expressed concern that Australia would not be ready if a war were to break out.“I don’t think we are, no, and it’s not just me saying that. So many experts are saying that. We’ve had ASPI, for instance, who are a well-respected think tank in this area, saying that we are at risk of having a ‘paper’ defence force,” he said on 2GB.
Taylor said the “remarkable” men and women in the defence force were not getting the support required.
“We don’t have the agility we need. We’re short of the people we need. The recruitment is not reaching its targets, and we don’t have the local sovereign capability we need,” he said.
He said Australia was putting at risk its most important alliances.
“And there’s none more important than the United States in keeping peace in our part of the world ... So, we’ve got to get serious about this,” he said.
He called for Australia to lift its game on defence spending to at least 3 percent of GDP, including investment into counter-drone technology, which has become a central aspect of modern warfare.
However, Assistant Defence Minister Peter Khalil recently defended Australia’s defence spending.
