Most of Rudd's new Defense equipment plan is for the replacement of existing aging equipment, but with a doubling of the Sub force and twenty 2,000 ton Corvettes to replace 14 smaller, very lightly armed, Armidale patrol boats.
For some to suggest this will threaten and upset China, with its huge and rapidly growing military, is absolutely laughable.
China has 2.3 million Army troops - Australia has 26,500. China has 7,500 main battle tanks - Australia has 60. China has 26 Destroyers - Australia has none now, but plans 3. China has 49 Frigates - Australia has 12 now, to be replaced by 8 by 2025. China has 64 Submarines - Australia has 6 but plans to have 12 by 2025. China has 31 Large Landing Ships - Australia has 3.
Indonesia is slowly acquiring a fleet of 12 Russian built Kilo class submarines that carry cruise missiles. Such subs would be able to destroy dams, bridges and power plants along our eastern coast from more than two hundred kilometres out to sea.
How this Rudd plan will be paid for is another question.
