The Federal government will not listen to the Australian public regarding our involvement in Iraq. Lets face it … only one voice counts to John Howard and co, and thats whatever George W Bush says.

A poll conducted by think tank the Lowy Institute found that 84% of Australians disagree with the statement that the war in Iraq has reduced the threat of terrorism. Two-thirds disagreed that the war would lead to the spread of democracy in the Middle East, and 85 per cent think the experience should make us cautious about using military force to deal with rogue regimes.

The government of course has sought to discredit the poll, saying it was skewed to ignore the risks of surrendering to terrorism. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer dismissed the findings and accused the Lowy Institute of structuring the poll to get aparticular result. Treasurer Peter Costello also rejected the findings of the poll,saying it did not mean Australian troops should be pulled out of Iraq.

I think there is a clear distinction between the effectiveness of the war and what Australia should be doing with our troops in Iraq. The war itself has only ever had a tenuous connection with the war on terror - it had more to do with vengeance against Saddam Hussein. No denying Hussein was an evil thug, and that the Iraqi people suffered greatly under his regime. But the regime’s role in spreading international terrorism was almost certainly marginal. What the Iraq war has done is to remove the legitimate focus on dealing with the terrorists - the right thing to do was apply enough force in Afghanistan (a legitimate target for the US and allies because the Taliban regime clearly supported Al Quaeda and played host to its leaders and training camps) to have finished the job there properly, and focused much greater energy on Iraq which was peripheral to the fight against terror. The other thing it has done of course is to serve as a magnet for the jihadist nutcases to go there and fight for whatever their cause is.

Having said that the war in Iraq was ill-conceived, and is not really achieving whatever its stated objectives were (these are a moving target, with Bush, Howard and co ducking and weaving constantly), it is not tenable for Australia to withdraw from the mess. We helped get Iraq to its current state by participating in a poorly planned war, so morally we need to stay there and help secure Iraq as a stable state. What has to be demanded in Iraq is a clear strategy from the USA as to what has to be done to stabilise and secure Iraq - John Howard must demand this, and not merely tag along with whatever George W Bush wants to do. What is happening there now strikes me as lacking in direction, and with no clear end in sight. I expect that the coalition of countries in Iraq will need to apply much more force than they have to date to get Iraq sorted out …is it better to accept this, rather than let the current instability drift on for years.

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