americans not happy....

By North America correspondent Kim Landers for AM

American wheat farmers are urging the US Senate to conduct its own investigation into AWBs payment of kickbacks to the former Iraqi regime.

Peak lobby group US Wheat Associates, which represents American state wheat boards, has met in Texas over the weekend.

US Wheat Associates president Alan Tracy says he was stunned that former Australian ambassador Michael Thawley lobbied the head of a powerful US Senate Committee to drop an earlier inquiry.

Mr Tracy says American wheat farmers want the US Senate to reopen its scuttled inquiry.

"We think that's wholly appropriate at this point - there are a number of threads that apply these issues to US law and in addition clearly US producers have been affected by the action of these illicit payments of the AWB," he said.

He says US Senator Norm Coleman was misled to drop the US Senator investigation.

"It's clear that Senator Coleman was misled, whether Ambassador Thawley intentionally misled him or whether he was misled himself, we don't know and I suspect that your inquiry will take a look into that Coleman inquiry, but we suspect that Senator Coleman is going want to look into that issue himself," he said.

He says it is very unusual for an Australian Government official to go to such great lengths to lobby a US Senator to drop an investigation.

"It would be very usual for something like that to occur. In the reverse if you will, we don't find this blurring of the distinction between the government and the AWB in your case," he said.

"Similar things like those doesn't seem to happen to that extent here."

He says legal action in the US against AWB may be possible but that it clearly requires more investigation.

Downer comments

He says Mr Downer's comments that he is the "sworn enemy" of Australian wheat growers are "truly unfortunate".

"Because Australian producers and American producers have always been friends - they have a lot in common," he said.

"Certainly we compete in the international market place, but let's not confuse the hardworking Australian farmers with the multinational corporation that has had a few bad actors, and done some illicit things."

Ambassador meetings

Meanwhile, Australia's Ambassador Dennis Richardson has already agreed to meet US Republican Senator Norm Coleman to discuss the AWB affair, but there is still no set time.

Earlier this week, Senator Coleman had written to the Ambassador, angry he may have been duped into dropping a planned inquiry into the kickbacks because Australia's then Ambassador Michael Thawley assured him they did not happen.

Now Ambassador Richardson has responded to the powerful Senator.

In the letter released to ABC Radio's AM program, he says "I am advised that no credible evidence has been presented to suggest that Foreign Affairs officials were aware of and complicit in the payments of illegal kickbacks".

The letter also points out that Commissioner Terence Cole is aware some US Senators have questioned his inquiry's independence, prompting Commissioner Cole to assert he does not take instruction from the Government.

In a separate statement to the media, Mr Richardson says he will talk to journalists after his discussions with Senator Coleman.

US Senator speaks out

For his part, Senator Coleman has broken his silence, giving his first interview to the media about the affair.

He told the Associated Press that "it's really important to clear the air, to find out what folks knew and when they knew it".

Senator Coleman also says Mr Thawley, who now has a consulting business in Washington, has not responded to his request for an explanation.

But he says he is "not looking for an apology from the guy" adding he just wants "a clear understanding of how this transpired, why it transpired and to make sure it doesn't transpire again".

Dave R.