Final withdrawal of Australian troops from East Timor
Monday, June 13, 2005
The Australian defence force handed the deeds to an ADF (Australian Defence Force) base in East Timor back to the country's government today, representing the end of armed peacekeeping in the country. The ADF says almost all their personnel will be out of the country within a fortnight. A small number will remain as part of a defence cooperation program between the two nations.
The East Timorese Prime Minister and other dignitaries were present for the handing over of the deeds. Troops from the armed forces of both Australia and East Timor paraded together while the Australian flag was lowered.
The Molena base, near the border with West Timor, has been operated by the ADF for the past three years. The site will now become a school.
A senior lecturer in international relations and strategy from the Australian National University, Doctor Michael McKinley, said "Although there's going to be a defence presence left in the country ... the peacekeeping presence could perhaps have been extended, particularly if there are any reservations whatsoever in the East Timorese Government about their ongoing security concerns. My understanding is that there are certainly some concerns still remaining."
"For the sort of psychological security of the East Timorese and perhaps even as a general message to the residue of trouble making, I thought perhaps Australia might have stayed somewhat longer," he said.
Lieutenant Colonel Brian Cox, commander of the ADF in East Timor, says he believes the country is being left in safe hands.
"We came in here in a period of turmoil in 1999 with INTERFET and General (Peter) Cosgrove leading the 5,000 Australians then, and we're now leaving with economic prosperity now in place," he said.
Sources
[edit]- "Australia ends East Timor peacekeeping mission" — Reuters, Monday, June 13, 2005
- Phil Mercer. "Australian forces leaving E Timor" — BBC News, Monday, June 13, 2005
- Michael Vincent. "Handover ends East Timor mission" — ABC, Monday, June 13, 2005. 2:28pm (AEST)
- "Aust troops leaving E Timor too early: academic" — ABC, Monday, June 13, 2005. 7:43am (AEST)
 | The text of this article has been released into the public domain. In the event that this is not legally possible, this article may be used for any purpose, without any condition, unless such conditions are required by law. This applies worldwide. Copyright terms on images, however, may vary, so please check individual image pages prior to duplication. Please note that this only applies to Wikinews content created prior to September 25, 2005. All content created after that date is released under a Creative Commons license which is mentioned at the bottom of each article. This is currently the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License. |
