I have been arguing this for years, Australia needs a Nuclear deterrence to our Northern Asian countries that see us as easy pickings. Our North West gas/oil shelf is our richest turf and we should protect it vigorously.

A missile Silo based in the central desert of Australia would be the safest region on Earth for one and could provide us with massive savings on other military spending cuts to platforms that are purely token efforts.

Quoted by Tara Lou Why get nukes, Aus? You would get nuked first anyway, so there is no point.

Too late, Australia has been a First Strike target of Russia since the early 70's because of the U.S. bases here on our soil. Facts from "Can Australia survive WWIII" from the late 70's or early '80's.

More importantly.......

To share this story I am going against not only the standard official secrets act that all members of the armed forces in Oz have to sign before leaving the services, but also the 2nd and more important one that covers what I saw on bivouac at Woodside ( I think it was called) army base during our basic training for the air force in 1978.

I was 18 and leading a small night march of 6 recruits using a compass and designated points to be "destroyed" on the base while their security forces were doing their rounds, knowing that we were in the area. If caught we were to be detained as prisoners of war. So the training was conducted much like a mini war game.

For some reason I never understood, the last leg of our march should have taken us back to where we were camped for the night, but it didn't. Instead we found ourselves creeping around earthworks with large concrete pads that had massive holes in the top. I was the only one who wanted to look inside the holes, and what I saw was nothing short of a missile silo. It was over 100 feet deep, there were walkways at various levels, etc.

I panicked, thinking I knew what I was looking at, so when we finally did make it back to camp I informed my Sargeant immediately about what I saw. He led me well away from the camp before telling me he will report this and that I am not to say a thing to anyone else until I am questioned about it.

It wasn't long after we arrived back at Edinbirgh AFB that I was picked up by the Provo (sp) Martial and questioned, so I made a point of playing dumb and not understanding what I saw that night. Which went in my favour, but I was going to be discharged anyway.

Two nights later I went for my meditation lessons with a Zen master who also worked at the Weapons Research Establishment as a physicist. I told him what I saw and he said, "I can't tell you a thing. But I will say, do not believe we are not capable already." End of discussion.

So when I was discharged I had to sign the 2nd secretive act, and it is something no other military person I've spoken with, except one, who thinks it possible that there was a 2nd secret act hardcopy to sign!! And that other person who knew about the 2nd form was a 20 year veteran of our own elite forces who I interviewed in the 1990's.

What I am saying is this; we already have some nuclear capability now, and for the past 30 years or so. Maybe this is more about acceptance by the public of something being put forward as necessary now given our new role as the Pacific Police in unison with U.S. support.






[edit on 15-12-2009 by Tayesin]

[edit on 15-12-2009 by Tayesin]

Does Australia have rockets to throw a nuke far enough to matter ? Seems to be a much better first step .

OZ needs some Nukes, what the USA and other Nations do can be described as Overkill but if the US ever rolls into with China your dead in the Water...

You need some, in part for defense against a Naval attack

In part as a deterrent that would cost anyone that tries some cities, OZ is too easy pickings.

Like the bloke mentioned above...Australia has had a secret nuclear capability at least from the mid to late 60's....until the Australian Government "officially" disbanded the nuclear weapons program back then, Australia has the most highly skilled nuclear scientists in the world....there would be no way they would have given them up and thrown them loose....it all went under ground.

In regards to the rocket technology, we have very sofisticated rockets beleive you me.....

Just because we dont use our military so "hardcore" like the Yanks do at every corner of the world dont mean we dont have a very strong deterence here.

Ive spoken to people here who swear they have seen missile silos on the outskirts of major capital cities hidden within warehouses and the like....

Nuclear power on the other hand for electricity is long overdue....there no pollution, the current generation of nuclear power plants partly recycles its own wastes and leave a very small amount of waste compared to previous generations of power plants....

I strongly support this move whole heartedly and they can put it in my backyard if they want!

Originally posted by Melbourne_Militia
Like the bloke mentioned above...Australia has had a secret nuclear capability at least from the mid to late 60's....until the Australian Government "officially" disbanded the nuclear weapons program back then,

Bull#. Care to show the government announcement when they disbanded their nuclear programme? You do not know anything about nuclear weapons - when and were where the so called Australian rockets tested? When and where the bombs made, where were they tested?

Australia has the most highly skilled nuclear scientists in the world

why do you think that? We only have one research reactor - we never even built it ourselves, Argentina built all of it!

In regards to the rocket technology, we have very sofisticated rockets beleive you me.....

No we do not, care to show us what rockets Australia makes?

Ive spoken to people here who swear they have seen missile silos on the outskirts of major capital cities hidden within warehouses and the like....

Garbage, care to point out the locations of these missile silo's in suburban areas...

In Australia we get Kangaroos and stick gun powder in there bums then put the nukes in there pouches! We call them Kangabooms! Science hey ya just can't beat it!

[edit on 15-12-2009 by MOTT the HOOPLE]

I always thought Australia already had nukes considering it allies.
But it guess I was wrong.
Maybe they already had secret nukes, it is the kind of stuff u don't want to many people to know about.

But I prefer we if didn't have nukes.

I think people forget that the Brits/Australians did some testing there in Australia

Montebello Islands, Australia

The site of Operation Hurricane, the first British nuclear weapons test on October 3, 1952. There were two further tests on Alpha and Trimouille Islands in 1956.
(20.399130°S, 115.565768°E)

Emu Field, Australia

The site of the Operation Totem, a pair of atmospheric nuclear tests conducted by the British government in October 1953.
(29.363027°S, 131.473389°E)

Maralinga and Woomera Test Sites, Australia

The site of the Operation Buffalo, a series of four atmospheric nuclear tests conducted in 1956. Operation Antler followed in 1957 with three nuclear tests.
(29.856724°S, 131.598358°E)


Woomera is obviously the most famous Austrialian test site, akin to Area 51 to some people, it is the largest land based defence area in teh world (roughly the size of england)

What would the point of having secret nuclear weapons?

Besides being against god knows how many treaties and agreements, the second most important reason for having nuclear weapons is to let everyone know...that you have nuclear weapons.

Am I not right?

Originally posted by Chadwickus
What would the point of having secret nuclear weapons?

im sure the israelis could answer that one!