As the paradigm shifts ...
Australian leader: U.S. alliance more important than one with U.N.
famulus.msnbc.com
ASSOCIATED PRESS
SYDNEY, Australia, Feb. 15 — A security alliance with the United States is more important strategically for Australia than an alliance with the United Nations, Australia's prime minister said Sunday.
In an interview broadcast Sunday, John Howard said he was unmoved by Friday's dramatic U.N. Security Council meeting where weapons inspectors gave a detailed accounting of Iraq's recent cooperation.
''It's not more time that's needed, it's a change in attitude,'' Howard told Australia's Channel 7 during a trip to Jakarta, where he met Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Howard's statements contrasted with the general feeling of many members of the Security Council, which unexpectedly sent Britain and the United States back to rework the proposed resolution they were hoping to present to receive military authorization to disarm Iraq forcibly.
Howard reiterated his commitment to following the U.S. lead and called the security alliance between the two countries ''the ultimate guarantee'' in security.
''I have a great respect for the U.N. but I'm unwilling to utterly sublet Australia's foreign and security policy to the U.N.,'' he said.
Howard said he remained convinced by U.S. and British intelligence reports he saw during his visits this week to both London and Washington, and was confident the resolution, when presented, would be passed.
''But I know that if the world community walks away from this issue, we could well have to confront it in a few years time at an infinitely greater cost,'' he said. |
