Posted on 03/20/2003 3:29:37 PM PST by knighthawk
JOHN Howard last night told Australians the invasion of Iraq was in the national interest because it would improve our protection against international terrorism.
"This has been a very difficult decision for the Government but a decision which is good for Australia's long-term security and the cause of a safer world," he said.
Mr Howard's address followed a spontaneous ant-war demonstration of more than 10,000 people which bought traffic to a standstill in Sydney.
Labor Leader Simon Crean condemned the war as reckless.
"This is a sad day for the world, and it's a tragic day for Australia," Mr Crean told the National Press Club.
"We are now involved in a conflict that we should never have been in and we are going to become a target as a consequence of it."
The Prime Minister's 7.30pm address was broadcast 5½ half hours after he told Parliament Australian units were engaged against Iraq.
He said support units were in action, including the frigates HMAS Anzac and Darwin and transport ship HMAS Kanimbla. RAAF F/A-18 Hornets had started operations over Iraq escorting "coalition tanker and airborne early warning and control aircraft".
Mr Howard declined to comment on reports SAS troops had crossed into Iraq to mark targets for bomb and missile strikes.
Mr Howard rejected suggestions the war made it more likely Australia would be a target for terrorists.
He said we had been a target since September 11 because we were a Western nation with Western values.
He said strong support of Britain and the US in Iraq would ensure we continued to have access to crucial intelligence information on terrorists.
"A key element of our close relationship with the United States and the British is our full and intimate sharing of intelligence material," he said.
"In the fight against international terrorism there is nothing more crucial than timely and accurate intelligence."
But the main aim was to deprive Iraq of weapons of mass destruction.
"And the more countries that have these weapons, countries run by despotic regimes, the greater becomes the likelihood that these weapons will fall into the hands of terrorists,"he said.
Mr Crean said Australia had entered the war "because the US asked us to".
"Troops should not have been sent. They should be brought home," he said.
The stockmarket shot up, with investors snapping up blue chips stock in the belief the war will be over quickly.
Wheat exports to Iraq were also put on hold as the Federal Government assured farmers that war against Saddam Hussein would bring long-term stability to the region.
Australia's monopoly wheat exporter, AWB Ltd, has diverted to Oman two ships carrying 100,000 tonnes of wheat destined for Iraq.
Ha, Ha.
The best way to end war and ensure peace is to kill the enemy.
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