As the US prepares for military action in Syria, the reactions of Kevin
Rudd and Tony Abbott are entirely in keeping with previous ALP and
Coalition failures to put Australian military forces before their own
party alliances with Washington.

Australia needs to send emergency medical aid to Syria immediately and
assist an independent assessment of the situation. It must not rush
towards sacrificing its young soldiers on behalf of an ambitious foreign
power before the jury is in.

The reported chemical attack in Damascus is a shocking and repugnant
reminder of the horror of war. But too many questions remain about what
has happened in Damascus, how and by whom this attack was carried out, and
what is the most effective response.

The Syrian government has been aware for some time that such an attack
would be against its own strategic interests, since it would likely be
used as the pretext for outside forces to topple the regime — it has
known this at least since earlier this year when President Barack Obama
issued public threats that any use of chemical weapons by the Syrian
government would be a “red line”.

The situation in Syria is very complex, so there is only one correct
response to this issue: An immediate, independent UN-led investigation
into the reported attack to ascertain whether this attack was authorized
by the Syrian government, break-away forces, or others.

Syria is in the grip of a terrible proxy war with many powerful interests
involved: The Syrian government; the Muslim Brotherhood; other Sunni
Islamic militant organisations; the United States; the United Kingdom;
France; Lebanon; Hezbollah; Israel; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Iran, and
Russia–which has one of its few remaining naval bases in Syria. All of
these interests are drawing on various assets to bolster their positions
and this includes the United States drawing on Australia. Some seek to
topple the Syrian government and replace it with one more amenable to
their interests, while others seek to maintain the status quo.

The WikiLeaks Party has not forgotten the decision, based on false
reportage about chemical weapons, for Australia to participate in the
disastrous US-led Iraq war. The Wikileaks Party recognises the previous
abuses of the Syrian state towards its dissidents, while similarly
recognising the abuses committed by US-backed governments in Saudi Arabia
and Bahrain–which the Australian Labor government disgracefully ignores.

In 2012 WikiLeaks released the Syria Files, millions of emails from inside
the Syrian government which included the personal emails of president
Bashar al-Assad. The documents reveal the intense complexity of political
dynamics in Syria.

In the interests of transparency and accountability, the WikiLeaks Party
demands that any decision on intervention by Australia in Syria must be
ratified by both the Parliament and the Prime Minister. Our military
assets are not toys for Kevin Rudd to play with during an election
campaign.

The Australian Parliament and Prime Minister Rudd must answer two
questions: One, what is the quality of the evidence and is it better than
that used to mislead Australia into the Iraq War? And two, what Australian
interests are served by military intervention in Syria and its aftermath?

The WikiLeaks Party