- by William Briggs
- The Guardian
- Issue #2129
Talisman Sabre 2023. Photo: US Army / Specialist Charlie Duke – flickr.com (Public Domain)
The 11th Talisman Sabre military exercise will be held later this year. A lot has happened since the last gathering in 2023. While the exercises themselves will have a familiar ring to them and the images on our news screens will seem the same, the militarisation of the Australian state, society, and economy has quickened its pace.
The sound of exploding ordinance from the war games will still be restricted to central and northern Australia and to Shoalwater Bay in Queensland. But since 2023, the US military, with the active assistance of their Australian partners, have drawn Albury-Wodonga into the direct orbit of US military activity.
The Bandiana army base in northern Victoria has become what is euphemistically being labelled a US military “storage facility.” Hundreds of US military vehicles and associated materiel have been moved into Bandiana.
An Australian army media statement sought to make this an almost appealing image, describing how “a splash of camouflage will come to Bandiana, Victoria over the coming months, as ADF trucks transport United States Army vehicles and equipment to their new home at Gaza Ridge North Barracks.”
As the US military equipment was rolling in, Australian army Colonel Clare Kellaway did her best to promote the ‘positive’ nature of the action. She ‘explained’ that it was a plus for the US as it saved them time and money transporting the equipment for exercises and that the deal demonstrated the strong relationship between the two armies and states.
Kellaway tried to allay any fears that the local community might have, saying that people “might be interested as to why there’s lots of different types of military equipment making its way to East Bandiana, so it’s important to let them know that it’s part of our ongoing defence cooperation with the US.” Whether that rather ambiguous comment reassured anybody is another matter.
At the time that this was happening, an appalling video was produced by the Wall Street Journal. The video was all about the use of Australian territory by the USA for its potential war with China and that Australia was particularly useful because it was a more secure and “safer” place for American materiel. US bases closer to China were seen as “vulnerable” to attack but Australia, the “unsinkable aircraft carrier,” was just the spot to launch nuclear-armed attacks against China in the event of war. The fact that Australia is well within missile range of China was ignored.
The amount of equipment, which the US military was shipping into Bandiana was not originally acknowledged, but is now on public record. They admit to having enough equipment to supply about three logistics companies, with as many as 500 or more soldiers. That, in the greater scheme of things may seem not all that significant and unworthy of a missile attack. That may well be so, but as military analysts have said, it’s the kind of materiel that’s needed for a future drill, a natural disaster, or in a war. Future use and deployment is another matter.
Significantly the Wall Street Journal video spoke of the use of Bandiana as a key component in US military strategy. This has potential ramifications far beyond the war games of Talisman Sabre 2025, as dangerous as they might be, and goes beyond the concept of a relatively simple storage facility. What is clear is that the US and Australia are actively making preparations for a potential war with China.
In a sad attempt to make the coming round of war games seem less lethal, if not benign, they have been dubbed the “Olympics of military exercises.” Just how live fire exercises, amphibious landings, ground force manoeuvres, air combat, and maritime operations specifically designed to prepare troops for war can be likened to the peaceful, if nationalistic appeal of the Olympics, is a stretch. Invitations have been handed out to 19 nations to join the USA and Australia.
The PR machine that goes hand-in-hand with the military machine has been hard-pressed to make the whole toxic exercise seem palatable. There is talk of how local governments and land-owners are consulted and claims are made about the economic benefits that derive from such events.
The people are then advised that “large military vehicle convoys will be on public roads, including major highways and country roads and that there will be closures of waterways and airspace and that yachts, fishing vessels, and aircraft need to be take special care. In short, don’t get in the way! People are also advised not to handle any munitions or weapons that they might find lying about.
‘WAR-READY’
The stated purpose of Talisman Sabre is to make all participating armies “war-ready.” This is about the only truth that is being told. The war that the US, and its ally Australia are readying themselves for is against China. The logic, if logic is possible, is clear enough and for the ruling class in the US, it is a compelling one.
US economic and political hegemony is seriously under threat. When threatened, empires have a habit of striking back and shooting first. For Australia and its ruling class, whose interests are so linked to a continuation of US regional and global domination, the logic is clear. Push China back at any cost. The cost might well mean destruction of the region and beyond.
That destruction will not be confined to the US strongholds and bases that are geographically much closer to China. Darwin and Alice Springs are already obvious targets. Huge fuel dumps have been constructed just minutes from the CBD of Darwin. Now the citizens of Albury and Wodonga are to become targets as well.
These centres are well and truly within the range of Chinese intercontinental missiles whose range is up to 15,000 km. It is 9,000 km from Albury to Beijing. Is it inconceivable that, should a war with China eventuate, then US bases in Australia would be targeted?
Is the Bandiana army-base a target or is it simply a convenient ‘garage’ for US military vehicles? According to the Australian military, it is no more serious than that. The US are saying that these ‘vehicles’ will be part of Talisman Sabre exercises.
How serious are these claims? If this materiel was to be used in those exercises, then they would be trundling along the highway for about 18-hours before getting to their destination. At the same time Kellaway’s media release assures us that the US saw a great benefit in Bandiana because it “avoids extra time and money transporting the equipment for future exercises and operations, and it demonstrates the strong relationship between the two defence forces.”
The Australian people are being taken for fools. Almost 2 years ago the 10th Talisman Sabre exercises concluded. In just a few months the 11th “Olympics of military exercises” will resume. War with China creeps ever closer. It is imminent but not inevitable.
The ruling class in the US cannot countenance a future without economic hegemony. The Australian ruling class marches in lockstep with their American allies. The working class in both countries are to be used to produce the machinery of war and to become the casualties of war.
As we move closer to Talisman Sabre, Bandiana has become another potential target. Should a war with China be fought, then containing it is unlikely. Winning such a war, for either the US or China, would ultimately be a pyrrhic victory.
