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  • Tony Abbott Press Conference - Death of Australian soldier; Afghanistan.

    25/08/10

    Subjects: Death of Australian soldier; Afghanistan.

    E&OE.

    TONY ABBOTT:
    I join with the Prime Minister in expressing the nations sorrow at the death of another Australian soldier in Afghanistan. Australia has lost another fine soldier. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of this fallen soldier and with his comrades who remain in the field. This is obviously a very difficult and dangerous time in Afghanistan. It is a mission that is vital for the security of our country and for the wider world and now is not the time to waver in our commitment to Australian forces in the field.
    QUESTION:
    Does the unique situation in Parliament have any effect on our mission in Afghanistan?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    I think that it’s pretty clear that both sides of politics support the commitment to Afghanistan. I fully support the Prime Minister's words this morning and I don't think now is the time to waiver in that commitment.
    QUESTION:
    Mr Abbott, do you think there should be a debate on the issue in Parliament?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    I stress that both the Coalition and the ALP strongly support that commitment but given that strong support from both sides of Parliament I don't think it would hurt to debate this issue. Obviously, it is an important commitment. We don't lightly put the lives of Australian service personnel on the line in a commitment such as this and I am happy to see a parliamentary debate about it, but as I say, as far as the Coalition is concerned, we fully support our commitment and as far as the Government is concerned the commitment is strongly supported.
    QUESTION:
    Is any progress being made?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    Paul, I had a caretaker briefing from the Chief of the Defence Force yesterday. He assured me that he believes our mission is being very professionally and very effectively carried out and while the tempo of fighting in Afghanistan has increased, that, yes, our mission is achievable, very much achievable.
    QUESTION:
    Mr Abbott, is our force commitment in Afghanistan about right as you see it? Because you did make noises about six months ago that you thought maybe we could do more in Afghanistan?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    Obviously the circumstances have changed since then. The Americans have joined us in Oruzgan province and under the circumstances, yes, I think our commitment is the right one.
    QUESTION:
    Should any debate on Afghanistan also include a time frame for withdrawal of Australian troops?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    My understanding is that we believe that there is a two to four year time frame on our mission of training the Afghan Army in Oruzgan province. Obviously no commitment is absolutely open-ended but Australia's commitment to do its part to keep the world safe from terrorism is obviously an ongoing commitment.
    QUESTION:
    Do you agree with that two to four year commitment?
    TONY ABBOTT:
    I’ve been briefed by the Chief of the Defence Force on a caretaker basis yesterday and, yes, it seems like it’s very achievable.
    QUESTION:
    But do you believe beyond that time, beyond the finishing of that particular mission, substantial Australian force could still be needed in Afghanistan?
    TONY ABBOTT:

    Michelle, I’m not going to put limits on Australia’s commitment to do its bit to keep the world free of terrorism. We know that terrorism is a threat to this country. We know that many Australians have died as a result of terrorist activities. Obviously, our soldiers are paying a high price to protect Australians and others from the threat of terrorism but this is a very important struggle and it cannot be abandoned.

    QUESTION:

    Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr Abbott, but you said a few months ago that you would support a 5,000-strong Australian contingent. How can you change your views so quickly?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    As I said, Andrew, circumstances have changed and I think we have the appropriate commitment at this time.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, is there any evidence that the withdrawal of Dutch forces has placed Australian troops in any greater danger? I mean, the Dutch had a staggering array of hardware on the ground. You would have to think that that would have had some impact, notwithstanding the US [inaudible]?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    I think the issue at the moment is not the withdrawal of the Dutch because the Dutch have been substantially replaced by the Americans. I think the issue at the moment is the increased tempo of operations in Afghanistan.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, it sounds like you’re saying that once our mission is complete is Oruzgan, which is training up the Afghan national army to take over security there, clearly the war is still going to be going on, we could take on another mission?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    Well, I don’t think you should leap to that conclusion. I think that the mission that we are currently involved in is a very important mission and the last thing we should do at a time like this with our soldiers mourning the loss of their comrades is to waiver in our commitment to the work that our forces are doing in the field. But what future work they might do, what further operations they might be involved in, I’m just not going to speculate at this point.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, putting aside what Australia’s doing, do you believe that the wider war that coalition forces are waging in Afghanistan is winnable?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    I think that it is very important that we try to ensure that Afghanistan has a reasonably stable government, such that can ensure that the country never again becomes a safe haven for terrorism. Now, my understanding based at least in part on the briefing that I had from the Chief of the Defence Force yesterday is, yes, it is achievable. That is an achievable objective.

    QUESTION:

    Are the Taliban getting stronger?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    It’s the tempo of fighting which is the issue here, not the strength of the Taliban as such. Again, based on my briefing yesterday from the CDF, I believe that we are having significant success in the struggle against the Taliban.

    QUESTION:

    Are you concerned, given the situation in Pakistan at the moment with the floods, that that may become the next battleground?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    It’s an unstable region. It’s a volatile region and obviously it’s in everyone’s interests that the Pakistan Government is given whatever support it needs to maintain it’s own internal security situation and my understand is that they are doing well in that area.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, when you met with the Defence chiefs yesterday did you just get a straightforward caretaker briefing in terms of the situation on the ground or did you have a more wide-ranging discussion about policies that you could pursue if you end up being the Prime Minister?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    Well, it was essentially a caretaker briefing on the situation on the ground in Afghanistan.

    QUESTION:

    What about heroin? There have been comments made in recent years about the heroin trade and the growth of poppies. Do you think that the opium poppies should be destroyed in Afghanistan or do you share the view of the British General who said about 18 months ago that that would be foolish because it would see only more Afghans going to the Taliban?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    Well, plainly it is important a) to improve security in Afghanistan and b) to take what reasonable measures we can against the heroin trade. So, I think it’s important to pursue both of those objectives.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, do you think the insurgents become emboldened when they hear politicians talking about a withdrawal in two or four years?

    TONY ABBOTT:

    What I’m at pains to do is to say that it is important that our mission be successfully completed. Now, the advice is that we should be able to have the Afghan army in Oruzgan province sufficiently trained to maintain internal security in the province in two to four years. Now, that’s important that we do have achievable objectives and we put realistic timelines on them. But I think it would be very unwise for Australia or any other of the coalition partners in Afghanistan to give the impression of weakness in the face of the Taliban challenge.

    QUESTION:

    Mr Abbott, do you concede that the mounting death toll will further weaken the Australian public’s commitment to the war? I think already, according to all the opinion polls, a majority of Australians don’t think we should be there.

    TONY ABBOTT:

    I think that it’s important that we do what’s necessary and feasible for us as a significant middle power in the fight against terrorism. Now, I don’t think Australians want us to shirk our responsibilities. Obviously, we deeply regret casualties. I mean, no one could be anything other than horrified by the level of casualties but we do have a duty to do what we can to maintain a world which is safe, a world where the universal decencies of mankind are respected so we will continue to do that as far as I’m concerned.

    Thank you.

    [ends]

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