VZCZCXRO1635
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHIHL RUEHKUK
DE RUEHBY #0266 0510708
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 200708Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY CANBERRA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6912
INFO RUCNRAQ/IRAQ COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON IMMEDIATE 4981
RUEHBN/AMCONSUL MELBOURNE IMMEDIATE 3859
RUEHBAD/AMCONSUL PERTH IMMEDIATE 2307
RUEHDN/AMCONSUL SYDNEY IMMEDIATE 1889
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI IMMEDIATE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RHEHAAA/THE WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L CANBERRA 000266 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE ALSO FOR NEA/I AND EAP 
PACOM FOR POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/20/2017 
TAGS: MOPS MARR PREL AS IZ XF ZP
SUBJECT: AUSTRALIA TO DEPLOY ADDITIONAL MILITARY TRAINERS 
TO IRAQ 
 
REF: A. CANBERRA 265 
     ¶B. CANBERRA 244 
 
Classified By: DCM Daniel A. Clune for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (SBU) The Government of Australia, in a National Security 
Committee of Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, February 14, 
approved a recommendation to deploy an additional 70 
Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel to assist in 
training Iraqi Army forces. 
 
¶2. (C) Robert Garran, Assistant Secretary, Central Asia, 
Middle East and Africa Bureau, Department of Defence, told us 
that the force will comprise about a dedicated logistics team 
of 50 persons who will based at the military training school 
in Taji, north of Baghdad, with another 20 Army instructors 
to be sent to Tallil, the base for Australia's 520-strong 
Overwatch Battle Group, where there are currently 30 
Australian Army instructors training Iraqi troops in al 
Mutthana and Dhi Qar provinces.  The ADF personnel have 
already begun preparations to deploy, and are expected to be 
in place by June, according to Garran. 
 
¶3. (C) Comment:  The decision to send additional forces to 
Iraq, announced by Prime Minister Howard February 19, was a 
bottom-up recommendation from Australian field commanders 
that has been in the works for several weeks.  For this 
reason, it is unlikely that the decision was taken in 
response to Senator Barack Obama's implied criticism on 
February 11 that Australia should send additional troops to 
Iraq (ref B.)  It comes even as the latest polls show that 
almost 70 percent of Australians favor either an immediate 
withdrawal of Australian forces from Iraq or setting a 
timetable for withdrawal (see ref A.)  Opposition leader and 
head of the Australian Labor Party Kevin Rudd has come out in 
opposition to Government decision, reiterating his policy not 
to send any new troops to Iraq.  PM Howard is once again 
showing that he leads by conviction, regardless of public 
opinion, but he is sinking further in the polls and it 
appears that fewer Australians are willing to follow his 
lead, at least where Iraq is concerned. 
 
MCCALLUM