Australia remains committed despite 3 soldiers killed in Afghanistan: PM

Australia remains committed despite 3 soldiers killed in Afghanistan: PM

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defense Minister Stephen Smith on Sunday described the shooting deaths of three Australian soldiers in Afghanistan as a "terrible blow to our nation", but said Australia remains committed.

Three Australian soldiers - a corporal, captain and lance corporal - were killed and seven others were wounded in the incident at Shah Wali Kot in the southern province of Kandahar in Afghanistan on Saturday morning. An Afghan interpreter was also killed in the incident.

"Today is a bitter day for Australia," Gillard said in a press conference in Perth. "Our dead will come home with honor, we will mourn their loss."

Smith said the incident was the single worst loss of Australian life involving firearms or gunshots since Australian troops began operations in Afghanistan in 2001. It was also the first occasion on which Australian members of the mentoring and training taskforce have been killed outside Uruzgan province.

Troops in Afghanistan are in shock, but they are tough and resilient, Smith said, adding that they will find the strength and determination to continue their mission and honor their mates.

While there have been 11 Australian deaths and 43 soldiers wounded in Afghanistan this year, Smith agreed that the incident would naturally prompt the public to question Australia's role in Afghanistan, but said Australia would stay the course.

Gillard also acknowledged that public support for Australia's mission in Afghanistan could waver as a consequence of Saturday's incident, but urged people not to judge the progress Australian forces were making on the one incident alone.

"Despite the gravity of this incident, and the horror of this incident, we are making progress in training members of the Afghan National Army..." she said, "Our mission is a defined one..."

She also said Australia remains committed to the war in Afghanistan, and the mission in Afghanistan was in Australia's "clear national interest" because it was a nation that had been used as a terrorist training base and Australian lives had been lost in terrorist attacks.

If Australia was to pull out, it would leave a vacuum that would be filled by terrorists and the Taliban, the prime minister said.

Of the seven wounded soldiers, Defense Chief General David Hurley said one was being treated for life-threatening wounds, four for serious wounds and two for minor wounds.

General Hurley said it was likely the most seriously wounded soldier would be moved to Germany for further treatment.

General Hurley said an "extensive investigation" would be launched into the attack.

The latest deaths bring to 33 the number of Australian fatalities since the start of the Afghan operation, and 209 have been wounded.

Editor: Yamei Wang

English.news.cn   2011-10-30 12:17:11 FeedbackPrintRSS
CANBERRA, Oct. 30 (Xinhua)