British PM Blair to visit Australia for talks

MELBOURNE, Mar 20: British Prime Minister Tony Blair will attend the Commonwealth Games and address parliament during a visit to Australia that begins this weekend, officials said today ( Mar 20, 2006).

Blair is due to arrive in Australia on Saturday and will attend events including the games closing ceremony on Sunday.

''He'll be here for some days, which is excellent,'' Victoria state premier Steve Bracks told reporters.

Attorney-General Philip Ruddock said Blair would address parliament when it resumes in Canberra next week.

No other details of Blair's official itinerary were available, but the UK newspaper The Daily Telegraph today reported on Monday that Blair would hold talks with Australian Prime Minister John Howard.

Security, the war in Iraq and Australia's close relationship with its former colonial master are among the likely subjects to be discussed by Blair and Howard.

Britain and Australia were among the first to join the United States in the invasion of Iraq three years ago.

Britain, Washington's key ally in Iraq, and Australia both still have troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Blair's visit comes a week after US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso and Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer met for an inaugural Trilateral Security Dialogue in Sydney.

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the Games last Wednesday and Rice attended several events on Friday.

REUTERS