Subjects: War against terror; Iraq
E&OE...........
GRIMSHAW:
Prime Minister, good morning.
PRIME MINISTER:
Good morning, Tracy.
GRIMSHAW:
Can we talk first about your decision to withdraw troops from Afghanistan. One of the prime objectives in Afghanistan was to hunt down Osama Bin Laden initially, are you saying now that you think that is no longer possible, is that why you're bringing them home?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, we're bringing them home essentially because the highly specialised mission, which the very skilled and particularly well trained Australian SAS were needed for, that has really been accomplished and the operation in Afghanistan is moving on to an institution building, stabilisation phase and although that is very important, it's not the sort of operation that requires the presence of what are arguably the most highly trained, skilful, special forces in the world. Now, obviously as an Australian Prime Minister you might expect me to say that but I really mean it. They are very well trained, as indeed are the special forces of countries such as the United States and Britain but we don't really need people of that high level of skill in Afghanistan now and that's the principal reason why we're going to begin withdrawing them from the end of this month. They're not, incidentally, being brought home to bolster the home security effort. I notice that interpretation's been placed this morning. Now, that effort is very important but I think it would be misleading of me to allow the impression to run that that is the major reason why they're coming back. Obviously we have other resources and other capacities to deal with that challenge. And the domestic security challenge is very much a domestic surveillance plus national intelligence challenge and we have, of course, made arrangements for other forces to be developed and put on alert and be ready to respond to terrorist threats.
GRIMSHAW:
I want to talk further to you in a moment about the current domestic security threat but I would like to ask you whether you think that Afghanistan is in a position now to cope with a winding back of its foreign military support because its Foreign Minister, Abdullah Abdullah, is making statements this morning that suggest that he thinks that they are not?'
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, the special forces that we have there at the moment were engaged in particular operations. Separately from that there's what's called an international stabilisation force which is being contributed to by other countries. We don't have the capacity to contribute to that, that's a major peacekeeping or stabilisation operation, if I can put it that way, and we just don't have the assets to do that. That requires hundreds, indeed, some thousands of troops. Now, we simply don't have the forces to devote to that kind of operation without neglecting other priorities that we rank as important and more important. And we are not indifferent to Afghanistan, and I mean, after all the SAS were at the sharp end of the activity to get rid of the Taliban and nobody can say we haven't done, indeed, more than many expected we might be able to do. But it has reached that stage where it's not an appropriate deployment of such highly trained people.
GRIMSHAW:
When our troops return you've said that they'll have a Christmas break with their families, then will they start training for a potential deployment to Iraq?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I don't know what is going to happen with Iraq. We all hope that military action will be unnecessary. We all hope that the UN solution and approach works and we very strongly support that. And the strength and leadership President Bush has shown in getting it back to the UN is the main reason why those weapons inspectors are there now. How that unfolds I can't say. Obviously it's something that we have had contingency discussions with the United States about. We haven't taken any decision. If there is a decision taken to commit forces then that will be fully debated in Parliament but it's premature at the moment to be talking about decisions about committing forces to Iraq. Obviously, though, if we were to take any such decision then any commitment we made would be fully within our capacity and would not derogate from immediate defence or national security needs.
GRIMSHAW:
Would your priorities and your intentions about any potential possible commitment to Iraq change were we to suffer a terrorist attack such as has been foreshadowed in these alerts?
PRIME MINISTER:
Tracy, the best way I can answer that is that in all of these things you must remain flexible. Ridding Iraq of her weapons of mass destruction is very important. The ultimate nightmare to me in this world of terrorism is if weapons of mass destruction were to fall into the hands of terrorists. I think we've got to keep that in mind. And Iraq has a track record in the past of supporting terrorist groups. Obviously, and speaking very generally, immediate home security and defence needs take priority over anything else but we are part of a global environment where terrorism is a threat. Countries having weapons of mass destruction like Iraq have shown in the past a willingness to use them are a threat to stability not only in the Middle East but elsewhere in the world. So it's a question of taking all of these things into account. I';m not going to declare something for all time as being what's going to happen. I can assure the Australian public that we'll conscientiously try and do the right thing as circumstances develop.
GRIMSHAW:
Okay. Prime Minister, Australians are trying to work out exactly how to react to the Government's latest heightened terrorist warning given that it is so general. Do you concede that it's difficult to know how to vigilant when you don';t really know what you're being vigilant about?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, I do concede that and we are living in a completely new world. This is an unchartered ocean as far as Australia is concerned. We have to be open with people. I felt it was necessary to tell the Australian public about the threat because it was sufficiently credible. I say again I want people to be alert but not alarmed. I want them to be careful but to go on with their lives. Now, that's more readily said than achieved. I';m looking at different ways in which we might mount an effective but not over-dramatic public education campaign about different things that could be done, including some television advertisements. I don't want to alarm people but I want to be open with them and it's quite a difficult balancing act and I can understand why some people ask the questions that you have. Can I say that I've found in the last 24 to 36 hours people understand what we're trying to do and we don';t want to frighten people but we are living in a different world. It is different from what it was a year ago and it's different to what it was three months ago and it's certainly different from what it was on the 11th of October.
GRIMSHAW:
Just finally and quickly, I suppose you're damned if you do and damned if you don't in terms of issuing these warnings but is there a risk that - and we've all got our fingers crossed - if nothing happens as a result of this latest alert that people won't take the next one so seriously?
PRIME MINISTER:
There's always a danger of that, however, given the terrible atrocity in Bali and as we all still remember the 11th of September I think people do have a different attitude now and they do understand that we're living in a different world. But I';m just asking that we be more alert in so many different ways and I hope we can do something to inject some new ideas into that but also get on with your lives. We are still a very open, happy, free people and we want to keep it that way. If we don't then the terrorists have won.
GRIMSHAW:
Okay, thank you for your time this morning.
[ends]