Prime Minister John Howard conceded Wednesday that keeping Australian troops in Iraq could cost him re-election but said he would not abandon the United States.

“I accept that I may be, on this issue, swimming against the tide of public opinion,” Howard told Southern Cross Broadcasting radio in an interview.
But he said he would not change course even though it might cost him the elections later this year. “I believe in what we're doing,” Howard said in the interview.

In a speech to an Australian think tank later Wednesday, he outlined Australia's reasons for joining U.S. and British forces in Iraq and the consequences of a terrorist victory in Iraq.

An early coalition withdrawal would be a “crushing blow to America's global leadership,” he told the Australian Strategic Policy Institute

“It would undercut the forces of moderation in Iraq at the precise moment when they have a chance – perhaps a last chance – to stabilize their country,” Howard said.

He said the strength of the Australia-U.S. alliance in Iraq was based on the preparedness of the two countries to share the risk and overall security burden.

Howard, who visited Iraq over the weekend, and said there were “some ever so tentative ... signs that things may be getting better.”

Poll results published in The Australian national newspaper Wednesday indicated that 68 percent of voters branded him arrogant. Only 29 percent gave Labor opposition leader Kevin Rudd that label.