[tape begins] I came to say thank you to the men and women of the ADF and the most evocative effective way that I could say thank you was to join them in the Anzac Day dawn service. There is no service in the Australian calender that is more evocative of that particular part of our character and I believed it was a way that I could say thank you. I admire what they';re doing. They are here in a just cause and I wanted to personally thank them.
JOURNALIST:
What about the risk?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, they take enormous risks. It';s a small risk I take and others, there are risks but I think it';s very important that they know that people are with them, that the Australian community is united in hopes and prayers for their safety and wellbeing.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, will you be able to tell them how long they';re going to be here if anyone asks you today?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, I won';t be able to, Peter, specify a particular time. We will be providing in next month';s budget for the funding of our presence in and around Iraq until the end of the coming financial year – that';s the 30th of June next year. That doesn';t mean, of course, that they will come home then, it depends on the circumstances and it may vary according to particular elements of the force deployment. It is just not possible, I know people want to know that. I understand that and I feel for them, but there are particular tasks and we intend to see those tasks completed.
JOURNALIST:
Was there any thought of bringing Mark Latham with you on this trip?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, I didn';t… well, I didn';t think that was… it';s not uncommon for prime ministers and defence ministers to visit forces themselves and then it';s always open to an Opposition Leader to go and if he wishes to visit any Australian forces deployed around the world he';s entitled to do that and he will have all the co-operation as the Leader of the Opposition in doing that. That';s the normal thing. I visited our forces in Timor on my own, I think then Mr Beazley went and visited them when he was Opposition Leader. That';s the normal custom.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, how do you feel personally being here on the ground in Baghdad on Anzac Day?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, it';s certainly the most moving Anzac Day dawn service I';ve been to in many respects, I';ve been to some moving ones – Kanchanaburi and Gallipoli itself. But there';s an immediacy about this.
JOURNALIST:
Have you even been to another one where there was automatic gunfire in the background during the service?
PRIME MINISTER:
No.
JOURNALIST:
What were your thoughts when you heard that today?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, you just get on with what you';re doing, don';t you – that';s the Australian way.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, I';ve spoken to Mr Chalabi and to General Sanchez in the last week, both of them said they would like extra Australian forces here, it';s your decision of course. Would you expect to be talking about that today?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh, I think we';ll talk about a lot of things today.
JOURNALIST:
It is possible …. send more troops?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, look, I';ve made our position clear on that in relation to… we';re not in a position to have large deployments. That doesn';t mean to say that you maintain the precise number exactly where it is, but I don';t think anybody should interpret that as some major departure from what I';ve previously said.
JOURNALIST:
Okay, thanks very much.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thank you.
[ends]