









KEVIN RUDD M.P.

MEDIA RELEASE

Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs

IAEA SAYS IT NEEDS MONTHS TO REPORT ON IRAQ

So why has Mr Howard decided on a premature deployment of Australian troops now?

The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed El  Baradei, has stated today that the IAEA will need a “few months” after the 27 January interim  report to the UN in order to reach a conclusion on Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction.

This raises the fundamental question of why Australia under John Howard has decided on the  forward deployment of 1500 Australian defence personnel now.

The problem Mr Howard faces is that the UN is yet to establish a case for collective military  action against Iraq.

In both the reports by El Baradei of the IAEA and Hans Blix of UNMOVIC last week, neither  was able to identify at this stage a “smoking gun” on Iraq - although both noted significant  deficiencies in Iraq’s cooperation with their respective agencies under the terms of UN  Security Council Resolution 1441.

So the fact that the UN has not yet established a case for collective action against Iraq, and the  fact that the IAEA is saying it will still need “a few months” before reaching conclusions on  Iraq, underlines the irresponsibility of John Howard’s decision on the forward deployment  now.

Last year we had Rambo rhetoric from a Rambo Foreign Minister. This year, we now find  ourselves with a Rambo Prime Minister.

A decision by any government to deploy abroad its troops is one of the gravest decisions a  government can take.  The decision by the Howard Government to prematurely deploy  Australian troops is irresponsible.  Labor calls on Mr Howard to reverse this decision before it  is implemented.

Mr Howard has not established a case for Australian troops going to war.  Neither yet has the  US.  Nor the UN.

Ends 14 January 2003



For further information contact: Kevin Rudd on 0418 796 931 or Alister Jordan on 0417 605 823







