Australia invokes ANZUS Treaty to stand by the US

The Australian government has invoked article 4 of the Australia, New Zealand, United States (ANZUS) Treaty, signed 50 years ago last month, to mobilise its response to the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington on September 11 which may have killed over 5,000 people, including over 60 Australians.

Prime Minister John Howard was in Washington to mark the ANZUS anniversary when the attacks took place and called an immediate cabinet meeting on his return to coordinate Australia's response to the attack, which he had earlier described as "a wilful act of bastardry".

"The Government has decided, in consultation with the United States, that Article 4 of the ANZUS Treaty applies to the terrorist attacks on the United States," he said in Canberra September 14. "The decision is based on our belief that the attacks have been initiated and coordinated from outside the United States. This action has been taken to underline the gravity of the situation and to demonstrate our steadfast commitment to work with the United States in combating international terrorism."

Under Article 4 of the ANZUS Treaty, each party recognises that an armed attack on the other would be dangerous to its own peace and safety and will act to meet the common danger in accordance with its own constitutional processes. This is the first time the Treaty has been invoked. Although Australian and US troops served alongside each other in Vietnam and Korea, these conflicts did not fall within the scope of the Treaty.

At the time of writing no formal commitment of troops or other resources had been made pending the US government's own decisions on what action it might take. But the Cabinet had directed that HMAS Anzac, which had come to the end of a three-month deployment to the Middle East enforcing economic sanctions against Iraq, would remain on station there for a while longer, pending development of a military response by the US government and its allies.

The, deserved a 'lethal response', according to Howard.

Before leaving Washington Howard pledged Australia's support in the hunt for the terrorists responsible for the suicide attacks which used hijacked airliners to damage the Pentagon in Washington DC and kill thousands of civilians at New York's World Trade Center. "I think now is the time for a calm but lethal response. Now is the time for the civilised world to work out the most effective way, not talk about it, not telegraph it."

"Australia has obviously offered all practical assistance where possible, whatever that might be, to the US," defence minister Peter Reith said on September 12.

"We have already committed as an ongoing operation significant resources in respect of intelligence and security generally," he added. "We've had some practical experience recently with the Sydney Olym
"We will do everything we can to help the Americans," Foreign minister Alexander Downer said. "The actual nature of an operation will have to be finalised and detailed and then where countries like Australia and the NATO countries fit into that, that'll be something that'll be decided at the appropriate time."

"We're certainly not getting, at this stage, into canvassing different options and proposals," he added. "Suffice it to say that we are deeply committed to working with our ally, the United States, in bringing to justice the people who are responsible, and we will do what we can in any practical and useful way to help the United States."

"What I think the United States will want to do is demonstrate, first of all, that it has the right and the capacity of self-defence, and we wholeheartedly support that," Downer emphasised. "And, secondly, it will want to demonstrate a very strong message to the world that this kind of terrorist activity is totally unacceptable and will never be worthwhile. So I think you can expect a very strong response from the United States, a measured response and a targeted response, a tightly focused response."