Australians might be divided over the Iraq war, but the election result proved most backed plans to keep troops there, Prime Minister John Howard said today. Mr Howard said that while he did not believe Iraq was a major election issue, most people supported his view that Australia should stay in Iraq until the job was done. The opposition also failed to turn the Iraq war into a major issue, despite its pledge to bring Australian troops home from Iraq by Christmas if it won government, he said. "There was divided opinion in Australia on whether or not we should have gone into Iraq," Mr Howard told CNN.
"But the overwhelming majority of Australians believe very strongly that having gone there, we should stay and finish the job. ... "They rejected the notion of the premature withdrawal of our forces until their job has been completed. ... "That is, of course, a view that I put very strongly."
Mr Howard's comments were backed by Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who said in the Asian Wall Street Journal that Australians had made clear foreign policy choices at last Saturday's election. In an article for the newspaper, Mr Downer wrote that most Australians realised it would be folly for Australia to withdraw its troops from Iraq now just as the country was on the brink of democracy. |