Australia’s defense minister is attracting controversy for admitting oil has been a major reason for the Iraq War. In an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Brendan Nelson was asked if oil is a factor in why Australia remains in Iraq.

Australian Defense Minister Brendan Nelson: “The defense update we’re releasing today sets out many priorities for Australia’s defense and security, and resource security is one of them. And obviously the Middle East itself, not only Iraq but the entire region, is an important supplier of energy, oil in particular, to the rest of the world, and Australians and all of us need to think, well, what would happen if there were a premature withdrawal from Iraq.”

Australian Prime Minister John Howard quickly distanced himself from Nelson’s comments. He said: “A lot of oil comes from the Middle East, we all know that, but the reason we remain there is we want to give the people of Iraq a possibility of embracing democracy.”