Australia urged to take over Dutch Afghan role

Feb 23, 2010, 5:28 GMT

Sydney - Australian troops should take over the Netherlands' role if they withdraw from Afghanistan's Uruzghan province in August, a retired general said Tuesday.

Australia, which joined the US-led invasion in 2001 to oust the Taliban, has 1,550 troops in restive Uruzghan where the Netherlands has the leadership role.

Retired General Jim Molan, who helped command the coalition forces in Iraq, told public broadcaster ABC that Australia has a moral obligation to take the place of the Dutch.

'I believe we have the forces to do it. I believe we have a moral obligation to apply Australian standards, Australian competence and Australian humanity to the province of Uruzghan,' he said. 'The Americans are the majority of the force in Afghanistan. They need our assistance now, and it just seems that we are taking a very narrow-minded and insular approach to this.'

Last week, Defence Minister John Faulkner said he expected the Dutch, following the collapse of their coalition government, to leave Uruzghan.

'It will be several months before a new government is in place,' Faulkner told the Canberra parliament. 'As I've previously said, Australia will not assume leadership in Uruzghan.'

The Dutch government collapsed at the weekend when the Labour Party, a junior partner in the ruling coalition, issued an ultimatum for the government to reject a NATO request to extend the Dutch military mission to Afghanistan beyond August.