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Australian Lawmakers, Groups Urge Government to Oppose NMD
Australian Senator Vicki Bourne Thursday launched an open letter calling on the government to unequivocally oppose the development of National Missile Defence (NMD)
"I am happy to be among 76 community groups, parliamentarians, church groups and union representatives who are calling on the government not to support the USA's push to give NMD the green light," Bourne told reporters.
Bourne, also Australian Democrats spokesperson on defence and foreign affairs, said "if NMD does go ahead it will, without doubt, increase nuclear weapons in the world, Star Wars will be well and truly back on."
In the letter, the parliamentarians and groups asked the Australian government to urge the US government to abandon its pursuit of NMD and Theater Missile Defence (TMD).
They also urged the government to inform the United States that Australia will in no way cooperate and will not permit the use of joint facilities for NMD or TMD.
They asked the Australian government to join with other US allies and most other nations in opposing NMD and TMD diplomatically.
They said that NMD may return the world to the dark days of nuclear arms-racing that characterized the cold war and such a development would be highly dangerous.
"Accordingly, the undersigned Australian NGOs (non-government organizations) and parliamentarians have committed to opposing NMD, " they said.
In the letter, they said that NMD has been opposed by the secretary-general of the United Nations, the governments of most US allies, especially France and Germany, and has been very strongly opposed by the governments of Russia and China.
NMD has also been opposed by 354 NGOs and parliamentarians worldwide, by 50 Nobel laureates within the United States and by a declaration of retired military personnel and religious leaders at Washington National Cathedral, they said.
On his part, Senator Bourne said Australia must take a proactive role in speaking out against NMD.
"We are significant players in its development through our joint facilities at Pine Gap," he told reporters. "The government must be clear that Pine Gap can not be used to develop or utilize NMD."
"The stakes are high, we are at a point in time where we can choose to limit and hopefully eliminate nuclear weapons or we can shoot the starter gun for a new and more fervent arms race," he said.
On September 20, 2000, 64 Australian groups and parliamentarians wrote and signed a letter, asking that the facilities at the country's Pine Gap not be used for NMD purposes.
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