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British prime minister visits Australia(UPI Top Stories Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)British Prime Minister Tony Blair is in Australia to attend the closing session of the Commonwealth Games and meet government leaders. Blair's itinerary includes stops in New Zealand and Indonesia, the BBC reported Saturday. While he is in Australia, the prime minister is expected to give the second of three major speeches on foreign policy. His office says the speech to Australia's federal parliament will stress the need for a broad global alliance, while the third, to be delivered in the United States will talk about reform of international institutions. Blair will also become the first foreign leader to attend a full meeting of the Australian cabinet, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Australia is one of the few Commonwealth countries to join the coalition in Iraq. During his visit, Blair also plans to lay a wreath at the memorial in Canberra to Australians who fell in the two world wars, in Korea and in Vietnam. The anti-war movement in Australia plans demonstrations at some of his appearances Blair 's flight from Brussels to Melbourne set a non-stop record of 18 hours and 55 minutes in the air. |