Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Brown for the question. Senator Brown and the rest of the Senate would be aware that the Prime Minister has made a visit to Afghanistan in the last day or so, as a sign of our ongoing commitment to democracy in Afghanistan, but also in order to reinforce to the Australian troops deployed in Afghanistan the support of the Australian government, and I think the support of all Australian people, for their mission there and appreciation of their efforts.

I am not aware of the particular poll Senator Brown refers to, but that certainly is not going to influence the government's thinking on this matter. He would be aware the Minister for Defence provided an update on Afghanistan to the parliament on 13 October, and in particular the importance of ensuring the Afghanistan-Pakistan border area did not become a safe haven for terrorists. The government has made it clear it will not be in Afghanistan forever and that we are on-track to transition to Afghanistan-led responsibility for security arrangements in Oruzgan province in 2014. In July this year Afghanistan and the international community welcomed the formal start of that transition process, in the first tranche of provinces and districts across Afghanistan. This marked an important step towards meeting President Karzai's objective that Afghan authorities assume lead security responsibilities across Afghanistan by the end of 2014. President Karzai is expected to announce the second tranche of districts and provinces for transition later this month. We remain committed to doing our best in Afghanistan— (Time expired)