We will stick with it

By CPL Alisha Carr

AS Coalition forces fight to oust Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, Australia’s military chief has a message for the ADF – “we will stick with this until it is resolved”.

In an interview with the Service newspapers, CDF General Peter Cosgrove 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. 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,” he said.

“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 the war in Iraq had produced “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,” he said.

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

He said they had also started to provide humanitarian assistance to the people of southern 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 civilians 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.”

He believed the campaign was running 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.

“We help our mates when we are persuaded to and we never fail. Working together we are able to maximise each other’s advantages.”

He said Air Force members in the Gulf were carrying out vital missions.

“Our C130s have moved 16 per cent of supplies within the area of operations – there are more than 100 other aircraft in the theatre. Now they are flying urgently-needed combat supplies deep into Iraq and doing so in a way that displays their highly-professional training to the best degree,” he said.

He said whether Australia moved into a peacekeeping role in Iraq once the war was over was a matter for the Government.

“It has not been stated what our role will be in the rehabilitation of Iraq after the conflict. I anticipate that if we are involved there will be a lot less people involved than there are now.”

GEN Cosgrove is intensely proud and humbled by the resilience and determination of ADF personnel in these turbulent times.

“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,” he said.

He said ADF members genuinely respected the opinions of people opposed to the war.

“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.”

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