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Faulkner appointed new defense minister of Australia

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-06-05 13:49

CANBERRA -- Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday appointed Special Minister for State John Faulkner as the new defense minister of his government to replaces Joel Fitzgibbon who resigned from the portfolio on Thursday.

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"John Faulkner is a man of unquestioning integrity and a man of great character," Mr Rudd said.

Rudd said Faulkner had served with distinction as minister for veterans affairs and minister for defense science and personnel in the previous Labor government and as leader of the opposition in the Senate in the period 1998-2004.

"Beyond that John Faulkner is a man of unquestionable integrity and strength of character and that has been reflected in the multiple portfolios he has been responsible for, both in government and opposition over a long and distinguished parliamentary career," he told a press conference in Canberra.

"John Faulkner has a tough job ahead of him and that is to implement the reforms outlined in the Defense White Paper carefully crafted by Joel Fitzgibbon when he was minister," the prime minister added.

Faulkner said he was honored to take on the role but acknowledged it would be a challenge.

"I'm now right at the bottom of a very steep learning curve for a new portfolio and in the weeks and months ahead I'll have another challenge in clambering up that learning curve," he said.

Faulkner said he was looking forward to rolling out the recently-released Defense white paper and reforming the department.