Protesters delivered a firm anti-Iraq war message to US Vice President Dick Cheney in Australia yesterday as one of his firmest allies faces searching questions over its commitment to the unpopular war.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard has ruled out following Britain's example by reducing troop numbers in Iraq but his unwavering commitment has him walking through a political minefield towards an election later this year.
"Mr Howard is enduring a perfect storm on the alliance and Iraq at the moment, a series of unexpected events which are combining to make for difficult sailing," Michael Fullilove, global issues director at the Lowy Institute think tank in Sydney, said yesterday.
Police began a security clampdown in Sydney ahead of Cheney's potentially stormy visit, warning commuters of major traffic jams due to city road closures during his visit.
Cheney was due to arrive late yesterday, with protesters and police squaring off over the legality of a planned demonstration and march to the US consulate in Sydney.
"What the protest groups propose to do is that any location where Cheney has engagements, they intend to turn up and actually disrupt and cause as much problems as they can for the people in and around the area," New South Wales state Deputy Police Commissioner Terry Collins told Australian radio.
At a refueling stopover in Guam, Cheney told several hundred soldiers at Andersen Air Force base that the base "had tremendous importance to the peace and security of our world."
"By positioning forces on Guam, the United States can move quickly and effectively to protect our friends, to defend our interests, to bring relief in times of emergency, to keep the sea lanes open to commence and closed to terrorists," he said.
Cheney again emphasized a message of no retreat from Iraq.
"We'll be flexible, we'll do all we can to adapt to conditions on the ground, we'll make every change necessary to do the job and I want you to know that the American people do not and will not support a policy of retreat," he said.
Iraq is a major problem for Howard's conservative government ahead of elections in the second half of this year, perhaps the toughest of his 11-year reign.
An opinion poll this week found 67 percent of Australians either want Howard to set a date forithdrawing troops from Iraq or pull them out immediately. Cheney meets Howard tomorrow.
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