By Tom Allard
First published in the Sydney Morning Herald on November 21, 2002
Australia's commando forces are being pulled out of Afghanistan, but face the prospect of joining the looming war with Iraq.
Australian SAS soldiers on patrol near Bagram, Afghanistan, September 2002.Credit: Simon O'Dwyer
The Prime Minister, John Howard, last night made a strident case for invading Iraq should it fail to comply with United Nations demands, saying the military had begun preparing for such action.
He revealed that Special Air Service soldiers, in Afghanistan for nearly a year in the war against terrorism, would begin withdrawing from the Middle East over the next few weeks.
The announcement comes only 24 hours after the Government put the nation on a high security alert, saying it had received credible intelligence of a possible attack linked to al-Qaeda on Australian soil within the next two months.
In Washington, a senior State Department official last night confirmed the nature of the threat, saying it was targeted directly at Australia.
While the SAS withdrawal will boost defences against any domestic terrorist attack, the Government is determined to maintain an overseas presence in the fight against "global terrorism".
Mr Howard used his speech to a Sydney business conference to flesh out his case for action against Iraq.
He also sought to widen the gap between the Government and Opposition positions by arguing that Australia could redeploy troops in the Middle East while still meeting its defence and security needs at home.
Labor opposes sending combat troops to Iraq and has identified South-East Asian terrorist networks and North Korea as greater threats. But Mr Howard said Iraq posed a far greater threat to world security despite the Koreans' more advanced nuclear weapons development.
"The crucial difference is Iraq has form," he said, pointing to Saddam's use of weapons of mass destruction against his own population and the country's attacks on its neighbours and sponsorship of terrorist groups for many years.
Australian SAS Soldiers on patrol near Bagram Afghanistan, September 2002Credit: Simon O'Dwyer
"The ultimate nightmare must surely be the possibility of weapons of mass destruction falling into the hands of terrorist groups."
As well, Australia had been engaged in military planning with the US for some time over how best to forcibly disarm the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein.
"During these discussions, it has been made clear that any Australian contribution in a new theatre such as Iraq would need to be within our resources and not detract from immediate defence and national security needs," he said.
"As a broad indicator, it has been noted that our contribution to operations in and around Afghanistan has met that basic test. As the Australian public would expect, the Australian Defence Force itself has made appropriate contingency arrangements."
The comments strongly indicate that Australia is prepared to agree to US requests to deploy the highly regarded SAS troops to Iraq.
Mr Howard's focus on Iraq in a major speech outlining his policy agenda for his third and possibly last term came as the Government vigorously defended its decision to go public with the local terrorist threat.
Some security experts have questioned the move, saying the vague nature of the warning would serve only to alarm people.
Meanwhile, NSW police called for calm while joining the Premier, Bob Carr, in warning that Sydney's many national "icons" made it the most likely target of any looming attack.
"I think we've got to assume that Sydney would be a bigger target than Launceston or Toowoomba," Mr Carr said.
The SAS troops, who have been involved in intense fighting in Afghanistan, have been highly praised by Washington and the new administration in Kabul.
In March, an entire 150-strong squadron of SAS commandos proved crucial in rescuing US troops pinned down by Taliban and al-Qaeda fire during the troubled Operation Anaconda. It was the biggest firefight of the campaign and more than 300 enemy troops were killed.
Australia also offered air and naval support and aircraft refuellers for the Afghanistan war.