Richard Butler

  • RICHARD BUTLER. New Sanctions on North Korea: No substitute for direct political engagement

    The new sanctions on DPRK will likely suffer the failure of so many such sanctions orders. DPRK policy and actions have their reasons. Those must be addressed directly, politically. Will the nuclear weapon states do it, or is it too close to their bones?   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Anarchy restored: Trump and Kim jong un.

    The dispute over the DPRK’s nuclear weapons program is a disturbing example of the renewal of anarchy as the main determinant in international politics. It is being conducted by two unreliable leaders. Intervention by saner states is needed urgently.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Iran: Trump is demanding fake facts.

    President Trump is demanding that US intelligence agencies provide material on which he can base a declaration that Iran is not in compliance with the international agreement to curb its nuclear programme. The material does not exist, so they’ll need to be fake facts. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Trump’s “Principled Realism” : details withheld

    President Trump’s speech on a new Afghanistan strategy was partly designed to mitigate the extreme harm he did by his Charlottesville outbursts.  Apart from claiming that the US would win in Afghanistan, no details were given.  He bashed Pakistan, embraced India and made clear that allies, such as Australia, would be expected to support the new tack by contributing military assets and money. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Has Bishop’s time come?

    The publication by a leading journalist of an extraordinary puff piece on Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and her leadership skills, is bound to set political hares running. But, where to? (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Turnbull’s Appalling Statement

    Australia is not compelled to accompany the US in a war on North Korea, as PM Turnbull has asserted. His recent statement would seem to reflect his need to distract attention from the serious disputes within his government. That it has resulted in his endorsing the possible use of nuclear weapons is a profound moral failure. Trump seems dug in and maybe that’s where the deep state wants him.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. The Myths of Australian Foreign Policy. (Reposted from 31 March 2017)

    The review of Australian foreign policy needs to be freed from the myths of our dependency and take serious account of the current and likely state of US foreign and military policy.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Trump: A Sideshow? (This is a repost from 27 January 2017)

    It is not only Trump that has assumed power in the US but also a set of deeply ideological and introverted Republicans. Both will shape US policy and actions. Australia should now review the conduct of its relationship with the US, and develop an independent foreign policy, freed from the dictates of internal US politics.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Off With Their Heads

    Article 44 of our Constitution defining who may or may not run for Parliament needs authoritative interpretation because it’s hopelessly out of touch with today’s Australia. This need not augur a grotesque Hansonite event reiterating that non-Christian barbarians are at the door.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Dangerous Dysfunction

    US foreign policy is being conducted in an incoherent and dysfunctional manner and key military decisions have been delegated by the President to the Pentagon. Trump, however, is threatening further military action against Syria based on the charges that, in the last similar instance, were deemed to be false, including by his own intelligence agencies. The possibility of conflict with Russia over Syria is growing. What role does the Australian government see for us in such a circumstance?

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  • RICHARD BUTLER. Turnbull, Trump and the Alliance

    Trump’s presidency is in deep jeopardy. There is serious instability in the US polity. Political leaders of virtually all countries comparable to Australia are stepping back from, loosening, their relationship with the United States. Prime Minister Turnbull, alone, is not. Instead we are buying massively costly US military equipment and Turnbull thought it useful to announce, publicly, that Australia’s purpose in the Middle East is to kill as many ISIS as possible. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Trump Tour: Unbound Cynicism

    President Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia and then Israel served entirely cynical international and domestic political purposes. All contentious issues were ignored. The great power competition in the Middle East: US/Saudi and Russia/Iran has deepened.   (more…)

  • The Honest History Book (UNSW Press 2017)

    This is a book of singular importance. It provides the evidence and materials for the correction of the distortion of Australia’s history resulting from Anzackery and the continuing insistence that our national character was forged in and remains defined by our participation in foreign wars.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Afghanistan: Early Warning.

    The US is planning to increase its forces in Afghanistan. It is bound to ask us to do the same. In the light of his performance in New York, our Prime Minister seems certain to accede, and do so without prior public or parliamentary discussion.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Malcolm’s Anzac Day Gift. Australian troops will be in the Middle East for the ‘long term’.

    The Prime Minister’s statement that Australian military forces will need to remain in Afghanistan and the “Middle East” indefinitely must be clarified as must be the powers under which such decisions are legitimately made.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. DPRK: The “New Cuban missile crisis”?

    The DPRK nuclear weapons programme does not constitute a new Cuban missile crisis. Any military attack upon DPRK would be disastrous. A new political negotiation must be constructed. This is not a problem to be solved by the US alone.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. US Missile Attack on Syria

    The US missile strike on Syria was an act of aggression the consequences of which could be immense. The facts of what happened at Khan Sheikhun must be established.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Fake news?

    Trump’s threats against DPRK and May’s against Gibraltar, as reported, are fake news. The US’ stance on nuclear non-proliferation of nuclear weapons is a fake.    (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. The many risks we run – Trump and the US. (Part 2 of 2)

    The deep-seated argument taking place within the US polity, partly but not only because of the mess being presided over by President Trump, makes even more urgent the need for a thorough-going review of Australia’s foreign policy, including how we conduct ourselves within the alliance.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. The many risks we run – United Nations (Part 1 of 2)

    The United Nations continues to be vital in the humanitarian field, but is failing in its role of maintaining international peace and security. The continuing abuse of their veto power, by the permanent five members of the Security Council, is jeopardizing the UN itself. This must be resisted.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Contemplating the Use of Nuclear weapons?

    A nuclear arms race between the US and Russia has resumed. The US is increasing the power and effectiveness of its weapons threefold, President Trump has indicated that he is prepared to contemplate using nuclear weapons to achieve some of his stated objectives.  (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. It Now Begins, in Earnest.

    Governing in earnest now begins in the US under the new Administration. The Congress, still deeply divided, will need to make sense of Trump’s sketchy proposals. They are unlikely to agree or succeed. The need for Australia to review and redefine the conduct of its relationship with the US has become even more urgent.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Australia and the US: Truth Time.  

    There is an extraordinary amount of deception and lying around current US policy. The Republican establishment will need to work out where it stands on Trump’s agenda. This is precisely the time for truthful discourse in Australia about our relationship with the US.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Trump and Nuclear Weapons

    Trump’s stance on nuclear weapons is ignorant, inconsistent, confused. What he has proposed on nuclear arms control and proliferation will not be accepted. His latest offer to the Russians has no chance of serious consideration.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Julie and Julia in the Promised Land

    Australia’s position on Israel’s policy of building settlements in occupied Palestinian land is contrary to that of a clear majority of countries. It is driven by domestic political calculations, by both sides of Australian politics. Foreign Minister Bishop’s unnecessary public reiteration of this position not only addresses a favoured domestic constituency, but seeks to reassure the Trump camp of our fealty.   (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. New series: We can say ‘no’ to the Americans.

    Australian Foreign Policy; We can say “No” to the US.

    We must end the interpretation of the ANZUS Alliance which leads us to accompany the US in whatever interventions it mounts in international affairs, and we must stop misleading the Australian people on the nature of the Alliance. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Australian Foreign Policy and the United States

    A review of Australian foreign policy is long overdue, not simply because of the election of Donald Trump. This should include redefinition of our conduct under the Alliance. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Our white man’s media.

    In this blog, I will be posting occasional pieces under the title ‘our white man’s media’ about the inadequate coverage of important issues in world affairs and in particular, in our region. So much of our media coverage reflects the interests and views of the US. 

    Is the Wretched situation in Yemen of no interest to Australians?

    The civil war in Yemen has been underway for over a year. In 2015 Saudi Arabia led a coalition of 3 other Arab states and Pakistan in invading and attacking Yemen, its southern neighbor. Saudi’s role was the significantly largest one and by now virtually the only one. What tied this group together was their interest in opposing the growth of Shia influence in the region stretching from Bahrain in the Gulf to Syria in the west. In plain geopolitical terms, the growth of Iranian influence.

    The invasion was assisted by the US, mainly through air assistance. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. Attack on Mosul : Australian Involvement?

     

    There does not appear to be a plan for the political disposition of Mosul, if and when the Iraqi/US led coalition frees it from ISIS. The political, economic, and confessional interests at stake have attracted all regional powers. Australia’s reasons for taking part, as the 4th largest contributor to the coalition, need clarification.

    Almost a month ago, the Iraqi led attack on Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, began. Its aim is to drive ISIS out of that city. In addition to the Iraqi forces, this action is being joined by Peshmerga ( Kurdish ) troops, and Shia militia, supported by Iran. (more…)

  • RICHARD BUTLER. President Trump: Foreign Policy and the Alliance

    Donald Trump’s victory has shocked America and the world. America is deeply divided. Where he might take US foreign policy is unclear. We need to redefine the Alliance relationship.

    The competition between Trump and Clinton was widely described as savage, to an unprecedented degree. It was also a competition between two candidates who polling showed they were the least liked of all time. Thus, a significant number of voters saw their decision as one of choosing between two evils.

    These are important facts about the election and the state of the US polity, but of fundamental importance in determining the outcome was that it became an election about the state of affairs in middle America: economic hardship, glaring inequality, and despair about the ability and willingness of the conventional political process to fix things.

    Significantly, these were in fact the realities to which Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren had called attention, but their potentiality as candidates was negated by the Clinton machine. (more…)