Oil a factor in Iraq conflict,


says Australian defence ministerJames Sturcke and agenciesThursday July 5, 2007Guardian Unlimited Sydney Opera House 2003: Nelson's comments threaten to reignite anti-war protesters' claims that the invasion was more a grab for oil than a bid to destroy weapons of mass destruction. Photograph: Chris McGrath/Getty Images
The Australian defence minister today triggered a political storm when he suggested that protecting Iraq's huge oil reserves was a reason for the continuing deployment of foreign troops in the war-torn country.
Brendan Nelson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that Iraq was "an important supplier of energy, oil in particular, to the rest of the world, and Australians ... need to think what would happen if there were a premature withdrawal from Iraq".