Trump's ‘golden dome' golden opportunity for AUKUS in space, says Morrison
US President Donald Trump's ambitious 'golden dome' missile defence system creates opportunities for Australia, says former prime minister Scott Morrison, who wants the AUKUS pact to expand from undersea into space.
The former prime minister and now chairman of the advisory board for Space Centre Australia has warned that while the United States has the most sophisticated and mature civil and military space capabilities, China is rapidly gaining ground in the space race and Russia is well established.
In a major speech in Sydney on Tuesday, Morrison, one of the founders of the AUKUS defence arrangement with the US and United Kingdom, called for a third pillar of AUKUS co-operation to include the development of satellites and other forms of space technology.
Morrison's speech comes just days after Trump announced the golden dome system, which is designed to defend America from ballistic and cruise missiles. Trump said the shield should be operational by the end of his four-year term.
While the Trump administration has estimated the cost at $US175 billion, the Congressional Budget Office calculated a total cost of $US831 billion over two decades.
In his speech, Morrison highlighted the fact that his government created the Australian Space Agency and promised more than $2 billion for the sector, including investing in satellites, the square kilometre telescope array and space-focused defence capabilities.
But with the global space economy set to grow from $US630 billion to $US1.8 trillion by 2035, and the number of satellites set to increase from 12,000 to about 40,000 in the same time, Morrison said Australia needed to be more ambitious.
'Space is now a frontline in US-China strategic rivalry that dominates our post-globalisation world,' he said. 'To obtain control and even dominance in the space domain, major powers are developing both offensive and defensive capabilities.
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an hour ago
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