- Liberal Senator Jim Molan says Australia’s army could be ‘impotent’ within week
- Retired military general says defence forces are not sufficiently resourced
- Molan, father of media personality Erin, says lack of fuel could be catastrophic
The former military officer father of media personality Erin Molan says if resources were cut off Australia’s armed forces could become ‘impotent’ in less than a week.
Retired Australian Army General and Liberal Senator Jim Molan wrote in The Australian on Friday the current defence forces are not adequately equipped to fight overseas and face a potential crisis should their access to fuel be ceased.
‘We need to address our critical vulnerabilities around fuel security and high-end weapons holding,’ he wrote in the newspaper on Friday.
‘Without doing so, we could be reduced to impotence in less than a week.’
The former military officer father of media personality Erin Molan says if resources were cut off Australia’s armed forces could become ‘impotent’ in less than a week
Retired Australian Army General and Liberal Senator Jim Molan said the current defence forces face a potential crisis should their access to fuel be ceased
Molan served in the Australian Army for 40 years, commanding battalions across the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East.
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott brought the decorated veteran in as a special envoy for Operation Sovereign Borders and was a large part of the Stop The Boats immigration policies.
The 67-year-old will replace Fiona Nash, another victim of the citizenship saga, in the Senate, and has immediately identified the need to increase funding of the military, particularly as America’s army continues to shrink in influence and numbers.
‘We have an expectation (not a right or guarantee) that the US will come to our aid in an extreme scenario,’ he said.
‘There seem to be very strong grounds to question that expectation and to adjust our defence policy accordingly while remaining the staunchest of US allies.’
Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott brought the decorated veteran in as a special envoy for Operation Sovereign Borders and was a large part of the Stop The Boats immigration policies
He also says the government’s plan to increase military funding to 2 per cent of GDP by 2021 is based off an old model and may not be sufficient in the modern climate
He also says the government’s plan to increase military funding to 2 per cent of GDP by 2021 is based off an old model and may not be sufficient in the modern climate.
‘If 2 per cent was an appropriate level of defence spending for Australia when America dominated the world, the question I have is whether that same level of defence spending is appropriate now when American power itself has relatively declined,’ he said.
‘But still we need to defend our national interests independently. In particular, we need to address our critical vulnerabilities around fuel security and high-end weapons holding.’