Kevin Rudd suspends his election campaign because of Syria briefings

[fruxodaily]

[QUOTE]The civil war in Syria has caused a momentary halt to Australia's federal election campaign, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd returning to Canberra for a briefing on the unfolding crisis.

Mr Rudd will fly back to the nation's capital on Saturday to speak with national security officials, and to work with officials on Australia's response to claims Syrian forces had used chemical weapons on its own civilians.

Opposition leader Tony Abbott says it is entirely appropriate that Mr Rudd return from Sydney where he had been campaigning.

In line with caretaker government conventions, Mr Abbott will also be given equal national security briefings.

Mr Rudd told reporters he was calling a brief halt to his campaign to consider the matter in all its detail.

"And I'm not about to make any rushed or rash judgements about what the country should do next," Mr Rudd said.

"We take our alliance obligations seriously, we take our caretaker convention's obligations seriously.

"But my first responsibility as the prime minister of the country is to make sure these matters are being attended to thoroughly and carefully."[/QUOTE]

[URL]http://news.ninemsn.com.au/national/2013/08/24/10/06/pm-to-break-from-campaign-over-syria[/URL]