Sukarno is reputed to have vowed to kill every Australian. But lately intensive sectarian and ethnic conflicts are affecting many of the small Pacific islands around Australia's northeastern border.

Recently the decision was finally made to build a new 1,200-mile railway in the Australian outback from Alice Springs to the northern port of Darwin, which is closer to Singapore and Djakarta than to Sydney and Melbourne. The emphasis has been on the economic advantages, but one wonders whether military considerations such as much easier troop and weaponry movements might be a serious background consideration.

Though many of the nation's soldiers are engaged in peacekeeping operations in places like East Timor and Papua New Guinea, troop numbers are likely to fall below 50,000-the lowest in modern history. This is a small force indeed for a nation nearly as large geographically as the United States. Also, Australia's defensive equipment has been allowed to seriously run down during the past 10 years. Defense spending is at its lowest level since 1938. (Sources: The International Herald Tribune, Sunday Telegraph [London].)