English Transcript

Cập nhật 25/06/2008 12:48:00

One of the United States' most senior military commanders says the US and Australia should be cooperating more on counter-terrorism measures and intelligence sharing in Asia.

As Commander of the US Northern Command, Airforce General Gene Renuart is responsible for the homeland defence of America including from any chemical, biological or nuclear attack by air.

The Northern Command was established after the 9/11 attacks on Washington and New York as a joint operation with Canada.

It serves as an early warning system against potential aerospace or maritime threats.

General Renuart has held the command for a year and visited Australia recently.

Karon Snowdon reports.



SNOWDON: He's a veteran of 68 combat missions, has served as a NATO commander, was Vice US Commander in the Pacific and led a fighter squadron during the the first Gulf War in 1991.

His last job before becoming the Chief of Northern Command and the North American Aerospace Defence Command was Senior Military Advisor to the US Secretary of Defence.

The decorated four star general now has a desk job but a big one...... to protect the US from any border incursion - by sea, air or from space. Oddly, that includes natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina.

He met with military brass and the Attorney General on how to improve US Australian cooperation especially in counter- terrorism intelligence.

RENUART: Australia and the US have been so closely tied together and any way we can expand the information sharing with our European, Middle east and Austalian partners and others to try and create an understanding of the linkages of terrorism elements in areas of Afghanistan and how they might link together with terrorist elements in South East Asia and how that might find its way to the US homeland or in Australia's case to Australia's homeland. And I think that's an area where we have to continue to demand collaboration, cooperation, information sharing of all of the partners so that we can really begin to reduce and eliminate that threat. I think the history of our friendship and our strategic alliance has gone through both Conservative and Labor governments. And Mr Rudd has made a strong point that friends have open dialogue and discussion, sometimes you wont agree and thats OK. But the enduring piece is the really long term relationship we've had even really beyond the ANZUS Treaty of 1951.

SNOWDON: Some of Australia's value as a trusted friend stems from its relationships in Asia.

RENUART: As Australia has a special place in the western Pacific and in South east Asia and really all throughout Asia I think Australia has a unique opportunity where maybe the US might not have the same entre, and so again how you collaborate to ensure what you really do is take care of the security of our own homelands, our own families, our own people is paramount. And so I think that's the thing we'll continue to try and expand.

SNOWDON: The appearance of an arms race in Asia has heightened concerns in security circles with big defence spending increases in Japan, China, India, Russia.

Last year China tested its ability to knock out enemy satellites by destroying one of its own with a ballistic missile, rasing protests in the Japan and Australia as well as the US.

RENUART; Well I think it raised concern all around the world.

SNOWDON: ..But it also means China has the capability to shoot down a US surveillance satellite for example.

RENUART: Well seemingly it does and that does raise a concern for us. The messages from governments from all over the world have been consistent. Its not a technology that is helpful to the nations of the world and we would prefer that they not purssue that. But governments will work that, that's not my immediate concern.