Australia may deploy agents in Indonesia
Australia may deploy agents in Indonesia
Agencies, Canberra, Kuala Lumpur
Australia wants to base counter-terrorism teams in Southeast Asia, including in Indonesia and the Philippines, the government said on Monday, as it laid out its security plan ahead of an Oct. 9 general election.
Center-left opposition Labor pledged to spend A$373 million (US$260 million) to strengthen Australia's defense as the two parties argued over the best way to wage the war on terror.
Prime Minister John Howard, whose conservative government has edged ahead of Labor in opinion polls, said two teams of Australian police would fight terror at the source and stop it reaching Australia .
"We will not wait for a terrorist threat to eventuate before we take action," Howard told reporters.
He said the A$100 million plan would likely include Indonesia and the Philippines as bases for the two 10-man teams of police.
"If you are there and you are working in an increased way with the locals, you have a far greater capacity to bring about, or achieve, the prevention of a potential attack," Howard said.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said, however, the government plan would be welcomed in the region and he and Justice Minister Chris Ellison would visit Australia's neighbors to talk about it if reelected.
The plan drew a lukewarm response from the Philippines, which said existing treaties meant the teams would not be able to go beyond intelligence gathering and technical expertise.
"I believe the agreement with Australia does not call for any joint operations. We will abide by our agreement," said Ignacio Bunye, a spokesman for Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in Manila.
Malaysia rejected on Monday the idea that Australia could stage pre-emptive strikes or base counter-terrorism teams on Malaysian soil, asserting that it would not allow its national sovereignty to be violated.
"Malaysia has not been approached," Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak told reporters. "We think we have the capability to deal with any threat of terrorism."
Additional teams would be based in Australia ready for rapid deployment based on intelligence reports or requests from police in neighboring countries, Howard said in the northern city of Darwin, closer to Indonesia than to the capital, Canberra.
Australia has not been hit by a major terror attack on home soil but 88 Australians were among 202 people killed in nightclub bombings on the Indonesian island of Bali in 2002 that were blamed on al Qaeda-linked Islamic militant group Jamaah Islamiyah.
Howard also pledged to spend A$50 million turning the Royal Darwin Hospital, which treated more than 100 victims of the Bali bombings, into a national center for critical care and trauma ready to cope with any further terror attacks in the region.
The federal police would also develop a unit of highly trained operational linguists to work on terrorism issues. Funding for a full-time bomb data centers in Jakarta, Malaysia and Singapore would be provided along with a region intelligence secretariat.
Labor leader Mark Latham said his party would strengthen Australia's defense through measures including a review of defense capabilities and increasing the size of the army by adding a light infantry battalion.
"(Southeast Asia is) a region where you can't take any risks when it comes to Australia's security. You need to recognize the importance of a cooperative approach," Latham said.
On Sunday, he said Labor would spend A$300 million to bolster maritime defense with a coastguard and sea marshals, and free the navy to fight security threats.