Region | Iraq
Australian troops want real action in Iraq, says army officials
Australian infantry troops want to move out of their "second rate" role in Iraq and Afghanistan and want to see combat, top army officials said.
- Agencies
- Published: 08:38 May 27, 2008
Sydney: Australian infantry troops want to move out of their "second rate" role in Iraq and Afghanistan and want to see combat, top army officials said.
Major Jim Hammett, in an article published on the Australian Army Journal, said some infantry soldiers were ashamed of wearing the Australian uniform.
"The restrictions placed on deployed elements as a result of force protection and national policies have, at times, made infantrymen ashamed of wearing their Australian uniform and regimental badge," Hammett wrote.
"[They] have resulted in the widespread perception that our army is plagued by institutional cowardice," he said.
In a second article in the journal, Captain Greg Colton, second-in-command of Sydney's 3rd battalion, said troop morale had deteriorated because infantry were kept away from frontlines like "downtown Baghdad, Basra and Helmand province".
"There is a growing sense of frustration within the ranks of the infantry that regular infantry units are only receiving perceived second-rate operational taskings," wrote Colton.
Australia has 500 frontline troops in Iraq, which it will withdraw later in 2008.
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