1. Afghanistan: Unclear and Present Danger
2. Indonesian Strategy ‘Defeats’ Australia
3. World Bank Urges Seasonal Labour Plan for Pacific
4. Lebanon: Australia to Keep Out of Peacekeeping
5. UN Looks to Beef Up Police in East Timor
6. Australia-Japan: Downer’s New Samurai
7. PM’s Secretary May Take Post in Defence
8. Beazley Maps out Defence Position

1. Unclear and Present Danger, Tom Hyland, Age, 2006-08-13

   The Australians are headed to Uruzgan province, one of the most dangerous places in a dangerous country. The majority of the taskforce will be made up of fighting soldiers from the 6th Battalion and 5th/7th Battalion.The special forces that have been in southern Afghanistan since last September have suffered a steady stream of casualties. Yet the public is told nothing about the type of operations the soldiers are involved in.

   • 5th/7th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, Wikipedia, 2006-06-16

      

2. Indonesian Strategy ‘Defeats’ Australia, Tom Hyland, Age, 2006-08-13

   The Indonesian Army manipulated the voyage to Australia of 43 West Papuan asylum seekers in a secret psychological warfare operation that gave Jakarta a diplomatic and strategic victory over the Howard Government, says Matthew Davies, a former intelligence analyst.

   • PM Dumps Asylum Laws, Age, 2006-08-14

   • Indonesia Denies Policy Pressure, Tracy Sutherland, AFR*, 2006-08-11
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   • Vote No, UN Urges Senators, Mike Steketee, Australian, 2006-08-12

      

3. World Bank Urges Seasonal Labour Plan for Pacific, ABC NewsOnline, 2006-08-14

   A report by the World Bank says the lack of jobs in some Pacific countries is a ticking time bomb. The World Bank is advocating greater job mobility for unskilled workers in the Pacific. The World Bank’s Pacific specialist, Chris Blakely, says temporary labour programs for unskilled Pacific Islanders could help.

   • At Home and Away: Expanding Job Opportunities for Pacific Islanders through Labor Mobility, World Bank, 2006

      

4. Australia to Keep Out of Peacekeeping, Australian, 2006-08-13

   Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says any peacekeeping force Australia might send to Lebanon would be very small. “Any contribution that Australia makes will be a niche contribution, it will be a very small contribution in some specialist area, that’s if we make any contribution at all,” Mr Downer said.

    

5. UN Looks to Beef Up Police in East Timor, Mark Coulton, SMH, 2006-08-11

   A 1600-strong police contingent could take responsibility for maintaining order in East Timor if the recommendations of a report by the UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, are adopted. This recommendation comes despite Australia lobbying for the UN contingent to concentrate on policing and allow Australia and other members of a multinational force to take on the military peacekeeping role.

    

6. Downer’s New Samurai, Cynthia Banham, SMH, 2006-08-12

   Relations between Japan and Australia have never been closer. Downer said Australia wants to increase the amount of joint training and the number of defence exercises with Japan’s Self-Defence Force. There was a suggestion that the countries will look at formalising their security and defence relationship, beyond the “memorandum on defence exchange” signed in 2003.

   • Australia-Japan Defence Relationship, Sen. Robert Hill, Press Release, MIN124/03, 2003-09-29

      

7. PM’s Secretary May Take Post in Defence, David Uren, Australian, 2006-08-14

   John Howard is considering a reshuffle of public service chiefs that may include shifting the head of his own department, Peter Shergold, to Defence. The reshuffle is being prompted by the retirement of the current Defence Department secretary, Rick Smith, 62, who is expected to leave in the next two months.

    

8. Beazley Maps Out Defence Position, Geoffrey Barker, AFR*, 2006-08-11

   Opposition Leader Kim Beazley moved last night to reassert Labor’s national security credentials, pledging better plans to manage the US alliance, the ADF and counter-terrorist measures. He also expressed concern over what he called “the bomber gap”, describing it as “a massive strategic problem for our country”.
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   • Beyond Iraq, Kim Beazley, Address to the Lowy Institute, Sydney, 2006-08-10

      

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