No request for Basra troops: PM

Last Update: Monday, July 11, 2005. 2:25pm (AEST)

Prime Minister John Howard says there has been no request from British defence officials for Australia to send troops to southern Iraq.

Mr Howard says he has heard of reports in a British newspaper that Australia may be urged to take over the running of the military's divisional headquarters based in Basra.

But Mr Howard says there have been no talks on additional troops in Iraq.

"There's always a possibility at a miliary level that all sorts of discussions go on," he said.

"There have been no discussions between ministers, no discussions between senior officials of the British ministry of defence and the Australian defence department.

"We have quite a significant contingent in Iraq already and that contingent will stay until it has done its job."

Mr Howard added: "The story in the London Sunday Times is not based on any discussions of which I have any knowledge."

The Opposition wants a guarantee that no more Australian troops will be sent to Iraq.

A Cabinet committee is due to meet tomorrow to consider sending Australian troops back to Afghanistan.

Mr Howard says no decision has been made yet.Treasurer Peter Costello says funding would be available if Australian troops were sent back to Afghanistan.

He says many terrorist attacks originate from Afghanistan.

"It was Al Qaeda terrorists that launched an attack on the World Trade Centre in 2001, it was the Al Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiah that launched the attack in Bali," he said.

"If you want to deal with terrorism, you deal with their basis."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200507/s1411305.htm