Milton Dick (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I'll be brief tonight to enable the member for Stirling to also contribute. I want to commend the motion to the chamber tonight. It's been an honour to participate in the Australian Defence Force Parliamentary Program, which has enjoyed bipartisan support since 2001. We know it provides members and senators with the opportunity to experience the professionalism, skill and dedication of the ADF. I was privileged to be on the 2019 trip and to support Operation Okra, which is the Australian Defence Force's contribution to the international effort to combat the Daesh terrorist threat in Iraq and Syria. It's part of Joint Task Force 633 in the Middle East. The operation commenced in 2014 to combat ISIL threats in Iraq. Currently there are around 2,000 ADF personnel deployed in the Middle East region. Our troops not only do an incredible job representing our country but are also working side by side with local forces to train and equip them.

One of the great opportunities I've also had as the member for Oxley has been to visit our troops on the ground in the Middle East and also to spend time in Kabul in Afghanistan. Our Defence personnel remain active in advising, assisting and training Iraqi security forces and training the Afghan National Security Forces. As the son of a World War II veteran, it is important that I honour and commit to those service men and women of our nation, who do such a great job protecting and serving our country. So tonight I want to thank the men and women of the ADF for their great service to our nation and extend my gratitude to Vice Admiral David Johnston AO RAN, the Vice Chief of the Defence Force, and to the service chiefs and the wider Defence community for their ongoing support for the ADF Parliamentary Program.

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