Australian Defense Force and Whole Term Paper

.." therefore the ADF "will work from a 'whole of government' approach and often in collation with other countries and militaries to provide the outcomes that are needed to meet modern security challenges." (Cosgrove, 2005; p. 3) Cosgrove relates that there are many other agencies "intimately involved in preserving our security, be they law enforcement, border protection, intelligence or other civil authorities and a comprehensive, that is, an enduring solution to global terrorism requires using all aspects of national power, including legal, economic, diplomatic intelligence and military capability." (2005) Because of the differing roles and the new pressures brought to the environment in the process of the integration of traditional defense functions with law enforcement and civil authorities it is necessary to understand that there are different requirements needed by various entities such as for example: "...military forces need good intelligence but law enforcement agencies need information that meets an evidentiary standard..." (Cosgrove, 2005; p. 4) Cosgrove relates that there is a need for development of "appropriate frameworks" and for responsibilities to be: "...clearly defined" if the effective combination of these differing roles is to be ensured. Cosgrove states that like many countries "Australia...is taking action to bolster the traditional capabilities employed to defend its people against the threat of terrorism." (2005; p.4) Cosgrove relates that there are 'whole of government' Memoranda of Understanding on counter-terrorism between: "...Australia and Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Fiji, Cambodia, East Timor, India and Papua New Guinea..." (2005; p. 4)

Cosgrove relates that it is necessary for the Australian Defense Force to be "adaptable and flexible to meet the diverse possible scenarios in modern conflict circumstances." (2005; p. 5) Cosgrove relates the following operation of the ADF: (1) in East Timor the ADF demonstrated its capability in ADF led regional peace enforcement in a rapidly executed and successfully transitioning operation from military to civil control beginning through the United Nations and then through the Government of Timor-Leste "with appropriate reducing support form the global community; (2) in the Solomon Islands the ADF "provided a strictly supporting role of security and logistics to the Australian Federal Police led operation to bring law and order to that place"; and (3) in Afghanistan, the ADF contributed to "a multi-national coalition to attack al Qaeda sanctuaries and depose the regime that was supporting them." (Cosgrove, 2005; p. 5) Furthermore, the ADF contributed in Iraq in the form of a "war fighting coalition and now to the rehabilitation of Iraq." (Cosgrove, 2005; p.6) Cosgrove relates that "it is important to note that the ADF's recent experiences have learnt from and been built upon a long history of contribution to the United Nations missions in places like Namibia, Cambodia, Somalia and Rwanda to stabilize and rebuild societies." (2005; p. 6) it is held by Cosgrove (2005) to be "critical that each situation or conflict be closely analyzed. The elements to achieve success will prove to be unique in each case. But the emergence of global terrorism has meant there is an increasing need to link internal and external security. As a result there's been a need to enhance the roles that our Special Forces play in counter-terrorism, whether that is externally in, for example, Afghanistan or internally in Australia." (p. 6)

The work entitled: "Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia" Chapter 7: Countering the Terrorist Attack published by the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade relates that Australia is deeply committed to the "global campaign against terrorism." (2004) This work states that no country can "...combat the threat from transnational terrorism on its own. Effective action against terrorism requires a coordinated international response based on close and sustained international cooperation. A vigorous proactive approach to fighting transnational terrorism is also essential." (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) it is further stated: "At the hard edge of Australia's whole-of-government contribution to the global campaign against terror is the use of military force. The Australian Defense Force (ADF) has been deployed twice since September 11 in major military operations against terrorism. First in Afghanistan, where we helped eliminate a safe haven for Al Qaida, and presently in Iraq, where international terrorists are among those fighting coalition forces and the Iraqi people over the latter's right to determine their own future." (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) it is further related that law enforcement agencies are in a good position to disrupt terrorist activities and the Australian Federal Police (AFP) is Australia's lead international law enforcement agency and has a critical role in implementing Australia's regional counter-terrorism strategy.Since September 11, the government has boosted the AFP's capacity to combat terrorism. The formation of an AFP International Deployment Group was announced by the government in Australia in February 2004 that would strengthen the involvement of Australia in "...peace-keeping operations, missions to restore law and order, and the delivery of capacity-building initiatives in the region." (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004)

It is related that: "The AFP has worked hard over a number of years to establish solid working relationships with regional police services. This groundwork paid dividends in the successful joint investigation into the Bali bombings. The investigation was underpinned by our bilateral counter-terrorism arrangement with Indonesia signed in February 2002, and an arrangement between the AFP and the Indonesian National Police, signed in June 2002. The AFP also helped the Philippines police investigate a series of terrorist bombings in the southern Philippines in 2003. And AFP officers were deployed to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Spain in response to terrorist attacks in those countries. " (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) the AFP delivers a range of capacity building programs to assist law enforcement agencies in Asia and the Pacific through its Law Enforcement Cooperation Program (LECP) which include: "specific counter-terrorism programs as well as programs designed to strengthen skills in conducting transnational crime investigations that are also relevant to terrorism investigations. Key areas for attention and assistance include crime scene management, forensic investigation, and the collection of intelligence for law enforcement purposes. The AFP is helping a range of countries establish Transnational Crime Centres that strengthen their ability to investigate transnational crimes, including terrorism.'(Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) Finally it is related that the AFP is making the provision of "...targeted counter-terrorism assistance to police services in Indonesia and the Philippines as part of broader Australian assistance packages with these two countries. A key initiative with Indonesia is the establishment of a Transnational Crime Coordination Centre. In another major new initiative, Australia and Indonesia recently agreed to establish the Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement Cooperation (JCLEC). Malaysia has for many years been a strong and reliable partner of the AFP in fighting transnational crime, with a long record of participation in AFP training and capacity-building programs."

The ADF engages with regional partners in combined "counter-hijack and hostage recovery exercise, the maintenance of close intelligence contacts and the provision of intelligence training." (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) Furthermore, the ADF has a focus on "improving regional countries' national coordination between defense and other agencies in the event of an incident, and on improving the standard of consequence management responses." (Transnational Terrorism, the Threat to Australia, 2004) ADF Incident Response assists in chemical, biological and nuclear (CBRN) response capacity-building efforts in the region." (Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia, 2004) Strategic partnerships have been formed between several Australians' state and territory governments with the Pacific island countries, including Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and Vanutu." (Transnational Terrorism, the Threat to Australia, 2004) Furthermore, bilateral counter-terrorism relationships with countries outside of the region have been formed with the most important stating to be that with the United States. Regional organizations and bodies also play an important role in combating terrorism through development of common policy response to the problem, as well as acting as a forum "for the exchange of information and ideas, coordination of regional programs and in the development of "the political will and momentum for action." (Transnational Terrorism, the Threat to Australia, 2004)

II. DEFENSE BUDGET SPENDING 2007-08

The work of Mark Thompson entitled: "Your Defense Dollar: The 2006-07 Defense Budget" published by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute relates: "...in today's world it's not just Australia that needs to be defended and secured but also Australian interests." (2006) Whatever Australia's interests might be, two clearly stand out in explaining our recent military endeavors: the alliance with the U.S. And the security of our local region. The reasons aren't simple. We can't be secure unless we live in a secure region, and we need a powerful ally to underwrite our security more broadly. Moreover, while we have many 'interests' most of them are shared problems that we can't make a decisive difference to anyway." (Thompson, 2006) That is however, noted to have changed since is that "...both the immediate region and the U.S. are more demanding now.....