Confirmation comes from the ABC reporting of the U.S. sale to Australia of a mulinationally compatible operating system that our three new warships will be part of George Bush's Missile Shield.

The North Koreans will love the fact that we'll able to act in unison with Japan at the push of a button, and China will love our potential for synchronisation with Taiwan

The link to the destroyer contract doesn't appear to mentioned in any of the Murdoch local versions, including that of the Advertiser, home newspaper of the city most likely to be building the ships, even though it's already been well accounted in the Weekend Australian

How did the Oz's Daniel Cotterill know about this five days before News Limited's "washington correspondents? Is he psychic, or did he jump the gun on the official propoganda? Either way, his disclosure of the Aegis as the combat system destroyer was published five days before the "official announcement of the possible sale". Actually, Greanpeace were way ahead, discussing an Aegis-based "Theater Missile Defense" system in a July 2001 briefing.

Maybe its assumed that the readership of the Oz and that of the metro dailies are mutually exclusive, therefore that nobody will be the wiser? And who listens to Greenpeace, anyway?

It's nice to see Pine Gap in the middle of something controversial again... it's been a while since the Whitlam saga.

Hate to play the raven once more, but doesn't all of this raise the signifigance of the construction site a little in the eyes of a would-be "terrorist"? Any place involved in military support would likely be of interest, but a facility creating a part of a floating arsenal under Bush's command would no doubt be fascinating.

P.S.
Just in case somebody writes up the winners of the Aegis contract as local or Australian, their U.S. premises are listed in this report

The "made by Australians" factor is diminishing already... surrrrpise, surrrprise, surrrprise,
.