CANBERRA - Australia is considering sending troops back to Afghanistan by early next year to help stabilise the country and continue the war on terrorism, the Australian newspaper reported on Thursday. The paper said the government was considering the new troop deployment, which could be a force of between 250 and 700, along with more civil aid for Afghanistan's reconstruction. A decision would be made in July.Prime Minister John Howard's office had no comment on the report, but the centre-left Labor opposition party said it would support a new troop deployment. "The opposition is prepared to engage in a discussion with the government on this matter, if the government wants to have it," Labor leader Kim Beazley told reporters.
A new analysis of Australian views on international security, from the influential Australian Strategic Policy Institute, has found 58 percent of Australians supported military assistance to the war on terrorism, while only 14 percent disagreed.
The deployment would come at a busy time for Australia's defence forces, which have about 1,700 personnel deployed an overseas operations, including about 1,400 in and around Iraq.
| They just ended the East Timor deployment which helps. Thank you Australia. |