United we stand ... Coalition soldiers at a forward operating base in southern Iraq. Photo from US Department of Defence

search and Destroy

By Cpl Alisha Carr

As Coalition forces fight towards Baghdad, Australia’s military chief has a message for the ADF – “we will stick at this until it is resolved.”

In an exclusive interview with the Service newspapers, Gen Cosgrove spoke directly about the war in Iraq and Australia’s involvement in the conflict.

He said the war would be over when Iraq could no longer manufacture, or use, weapons of mass destruction.

“That is the reason we are there,” he said.

“Other countries may say the war will finish when Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and the Iraqi people can live in a country whose leader will not oppress them and manufacture weapons of mass destruction.

“We will stick with this until it is resolved – if it’s a matter of days, thank heavens, if it’s a matter of months, so be it. I didn’t let my hope that this would be a quick war turn into an expectation.”

Gen Cosgrove said there had been “spectacular success “ and “a few surprises”.

“In a few short days the Coalition ground forces have made tremendous progress right up to the outskirts of Baghdad. In that time they have brushed aside a number of powerfully equipped Iraqi divisions.

“They have been able to do that while sustaining relatively few casualties and indeed, without having to smash those divisions entirely.”

He said they have also started providing humanitarian assistance to the people of southern Iraq.

“The troops in combat have managed to save the oilfields of Iraq. Everybody thought the oilfields would be set on fire in the south – this would have been a dreadful outcome. It would have caused an environmental disaster and a major blow to the future economy of Iraq.

“The surprises include the way in which the Iraqi regime immediately resorted to, what is essentially terrorism – suicide bombers and soldiers dressing as civilians and using them as human shields, firing mortars at their own people and firing missiles indiscriminately.

“These sorts of surprises needed a quick adjustment by the Coalition and they made that adjustment accordingly.

“As you and I speak today, the main attacks on Republican Guard divisions are taking place, while other forces are securing the lines of communication in order to eradicate pockets of resistance.”

He said the campaign was running very well.

“The bottom line is the number of Coalition casualties has remained substantially low. Of course, any civilian casualty is a matter of great regret but again, the numbers here are relatively low due to the great restraint of the Coalition forces. Even the number of Iraqi military casualties has been lower than expected because many do not want to fight for the regime and have gone home. That is a plus for them and a plus for the Coalition.”

He said working with the Coalition was a major bonus for the ADF.

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“Working together we are able to maximise each other’s advantages. Other lessons of a modern nature we learn relate to the power of mass media.

“We are watching two wars at the moment – the war on the ground and the war of the world’s media. Information moves at lightning speed. This an enduring feature of modern warfare.”

Gen Cosgrove said there was the potential for the division in the civilian community over whether Australia should have joined the Coalition to hinder the morale of the troops.

“Members of the ADF are ordinary Australians with family all over the country. Those relatives like to feel that no matter what the political view is on any military commitment, the country at large support the troops doing their jobs safely.

“Often it’s the loved ones who are more anxious than the troops. I have been reassured by the country’s political and community leaders who have universally proclaimed their support for the troops.

“To the people in the general public who do or do not support the troops, speaking on behalf of the ADF, we genuinely respect your opinion. The fact that we are one of the oldest true democracies in the world allows for political diversity – this is both desirable and helpful.

“But we also must say that we signed up to carry out the jobs given to us by the elected Government.

Please don’t cross the line into carrying your dissent against the ADF.

“We passionately love our country and our country’s reputation like all Australians.”

He said he had served in the military for more than 38 years and cannot remember a day when he hasn’t been proud of the people he has commanded.

“As I sit talking to you as the commander of the ADF, I’ve never been prouder of all of our men and women as our people are getting on with the job of serving Australia.

“To the families of Defence members I would like to say you are also part of the wider Defence family and without the support of you, our people could not perform their prestigious jobs in the highly-commendable way they do.”

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