more hypocrisy from the howard govt

Not exactly "cutting and running" but it sure comes close considering Australia, as part of the Coalition of the Willing created the disaster that is Iraq. How ironic that we are happy to go into Iraq illegally, yet when the UN asks us to go in to make the elections secure, something after all which we were told was the object of the exercise, Pussy Downer says "no"....


From ABC News

Australia rejects UN troops request
The Foreign Ministry has confirmed Australia has rejected suggestions it send more troops to Iraq to help protect the United Nations mission there.

The Government says it has been informally approached to help with security for the UN assistance mission in Iraq.

But a spokesman for Foreign Minister Alexander Downer says the Australian Government has already made a substantial commitment to Iraq and it will not be sending more troops.

The Federal Opposition's foreign affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, has attacked the Government's handling of the request, saying the UN would have got a better response if Labor had won the election.

"Our position has been quite clear," Mr Rudd said. "We've indicated that we would have provided a small number of non-contact personnel to assist the UN presence in Baghdad.

"If today's reports are accurate and the Howard Government has simply rejected such a request for a modest Australian contribution out of hand, it makes a complete mockery of the position taken by the Howard Government in relation to Iraq in the lead-up to the last election."