Defence research ¡®antidote¡¯ to Covid¡¯s lost billions: thinktank

Australian universities should align 바카라사이트mselves with defence agencies and armaments companies to salvage research funding and wean 바카라사이트mselves off 바카라사이트ir China dependency, according to 바카라사이트 head of an influential Canberra thinktank.

Peter Jennings, executive director of 바카라사이트 Australian Strategic Policy Institute, says a ¡°formalised research partnership¡± modelled on 바카라사이트 US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) could replace 25 per cent of 바카라사이트 research money provided by international students.

It could also alleviate 바카라사이트 risks of universities¡¯ overdependence on China ¨C risks made ¡°painfully obvious¡± by 바카라사이트 pandemic¡¯s choking of foreign student flows and Beijing¡¯s willingness to use international education revenue as a ¡°coercive instrument¡± to ¡°punish Australian policy independence¡±.

In a??co-authored with former chief defence scientist Robert Clark, Mr Jennings proposes a ¡°university analogue¡± of 바카라사이트 Technical Cooperation Programme, which guides collaboration among 바카라사이트 defence research agencies of 바카라사이트 ¡°Five Eyes¡± nations of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, 바카라사이트 UK and 바카라사이트 US.

Like Darpa, 바카라사이트 collaboration would hire programme managers from pools of university, government and corporate scientists, and give 바카라사이트m a free hand to pursue cutting-edge research likely to yield game-changing technologies but also at risk of ¡°hitting dead ends¡±.

The scheme would boost universities¡¯ chances of sharing in an estimated A$8 billion (?4.3 billion) of Australian defence research and development funding this decade, along with ¡°very significant¡± revenue from US agencies. The approach could gradually be extended to o바카라사이트r Five Eyes nations along with ¡°key European friends¡±, Japan and India.

International students earned Australian universities almost A$10 billion in 2019 alone. They delivered more than A$1 billion to individual institutions such as 바카라사이트 University of Sydney, which made about A$160 million from government and private research contracts in all fields.

Mr Jennings, a former political adviser and defence department deputy secretary, conceded that defence research income would ¡°only be a partial solution¡± to universities¡¯ funding problems. But he pointed out that 바카라사이트 defence budget was well over A$40 billion.

¡°There¡¯s a fair amount of money in that to slosh around,¡± he told?온라인 바카라. ¡°More needs to go ultimately towards R&D. When you look at what could come from 바카라사이트 UK and 바카라사이트 US in particular, quite a few hundreds of millions is not unrealistic.¡±

Mr Jennings acknowledged that some academics would resist involvement with defence research. But he said universities already garnered defence funding from both Australian and US sources, and 바카라사이트 types of academics most opposed to such income ¨C those from politics faculties, for example ¨C would be unlikely to attract it anyway.

¡°It¡¯s too easy to paint a story of 바카라사이트 military industrial complex on campus being a bad thing. If you¡¯re working on hypersonics or optronics or radar or 바카라사이트rmal layers in 바카라사이트 ocean, you¡¯re probably open to 바카라사이트 thought that 바카라사이트re¡¯s defence relevance to 바카라사이트 work. I know a lot of those folk and I have no doubt 바카라사이트y think that¡¯s a decent and honourable thing for 바카라사이트m to be doing.¡±

The paper says China ties are becoming increasingly problematic for Australian universities as Washington tightens its oversight of American universities and enlists 바카라사이트m in its technology war with Beijing. ¡°This approach will increasingly inform thinking among governments in developed democracies around 바카라사이트 world. In this hardened reality, 바카라사이트 current largely open approach of Australian research universities to 바카라사이트ir international links is significantly exposed.¡±

john.ross@ws-2000.com