- Jul 2, 2018
- 3,437
 |
MINISTER FOR DEFENCE |
SECURITY CLASSIFICATION: TOP SECRET |
| 1 June 2007 |
| Dear Ambassador Wolfe, It has come to my attention that the United States Senate has passed a resolution, Resolution 110-2: Resolution on Strategic Weapons. I want to reassure the United States Government that Australia fully embraces a policy of non-proliferation and has adopted the Global Assembly's Resolution for Strategic Ordnance in full. Furthermore, Australia operates in the region to ensure the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office which works to ensure non-proliferation of weapons in Australia, particularly through engagement with the chemical industry, and to monitor the proliferation of weapons in the wider region. Geoscience Australia operates a network of monitoring stations which can detect seismic, infrasound and hydroacoustic explosions as well as particulates and noble gasses in the atmosphere to monitor for the testing of weapons of mass destruction. This information is fed back to the Department of Defence and the Australian Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office. Previously, the United States Air Force's Air Force Technical Applications Center (709th Technical Maintenance Squadron) had worked alongside the Australian Bureau of Mineral Resources (now Geoscience Australia) to operate the Joint Geological and Geophysical Research Station in Alice Springs, Northern Territroy. This station forms apart of the monitoring network which is now operated by Geoscience Australia. Under our Status of Forces Agreement, we would like to invite the Air Force Technical Applications Center back to the red centre of Australia to operate the station, alongside Geoscience Australia, in order to monitor for the non-proliferation of weapons in the region. Yours sincerely, John Faulkner. |
Parliament House, CANBERRA, ACT 2600 Telephone: (02) 6277 7700 |
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Odinson
