In short:

Australian industry would receive $4 billion to manufacture drones and missiles under a new Greens party policy.

Funding for the "self-defence" weapons would come from scrapping billions of dollars in American contracts, including M1A2 tanks, Black Hawks and AUKUS submarines.

What's next?

Greens Senator David Shoebridge says his party's policy is only a "beginning", acknowledging more would need to be done to protect the continent.

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[–] Aussiemandeus@aussie.zone 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The benefits the greens get from advocating for this is more local manufacturing jobs, more upskilling of our own people rather then buying it from America.

Not to mention if the US decides were to be state 53 or whatever it would be better for us to be self reliant rather then on their whim of if we've been a good little country to trump this week

[–] eureka@aussie.zone 7 points 1 month ago

Absolutely. And, while I don't think the situation is likely/imminent, if hypothetically Australia becomes a proxy war theatre like Ukraine is, we saw just how easily the US abandoned Ukraine and negotiated terms with the Russian Federation. Now, that generally happens with proxy wars, but we're seeing in plain sight and open cruelty what usually happens diplomatically behind closed doors. If the smaller power can't defend itself, its 'ally' will happily negotiate terms with the enemy over their head once they feel the war is no longer a good investment.