Greens Leader Bob Brown says news of the death in Afghanistan of Sapper Jamie Larcombe, along with an Afghani soldier, is dreadful and the nation grieves his loss with his family, friends, Kangaroo Island community and comrades in the Army.

"Sapper Larcombe will be remembered in Australia's archives for his courage and commitment to our nation," Senator Brown said in Canberra today.

"The Greens call again for our Defence Forces personnel to be brought home to Australia," Senator Brown said.

Australian Greens Leader Bob Brown today expressed great sadness at the loss of Hobart-born Corporal Richard Atkinson and the injury to his fellow soldier.

"The Greens join all Australians in our gratitude for the service to the nation and offer deep sympathy to his family, friends and serving comrades," Senator Brown said in Hobart.

Corporal Atkinson of the Darwin-based 1st Combat Engineer Regiment was killed as a result of an improvised explosive device strike yesterday during operations in Afghanistan, the Australian Defence Force announced earlier today.

"It is becoming unprecedentedly difficult for anyone, anyone at all, to keep a secret. In the age of the leak and the blog, of evidence extraction and link discovery, truths will either out or be outed, later if not sooner.

"This is something I would bring to the attention of every diplomat, politician and corporate leader: the future, eventually, will find you out. The future, wielding unimaginable tools of transparency, will have its way with you. In the end, you will be seen to have done that which you did."

"It is becoming unprecedentedly difficult for anyone, anyone at all, to keep a secret. In the age of the leak and the blog, of evidence extraction and link discovery, truths will either out or be outed, later if not sooner."

"This is something I would bring to the attention of every diplomat, politician and corporate leader: the future, eventually, will find you out. The future, wielding unimaginable tools of transparency, will have its way with you. In the end, you will be seen to have done that which you did."

~ William Gibson, "The Road to Oceania", 2003

Greens MP Adam Bandt has expressed concern at plans for more US naval visits to Australia saying the government must explain what it means for Melbourne.

Speaking outside the AUSMIN talks at Victoria’s government house Mr Bandt said it was time for Australia to show more independence towards the United States.

“I will be asking the government what an increase in ship visits means for Melbourne and other capital cities,” Mr Bandt said.

“There are big risks in having nuclear power or nuclear armed warships in Port Phillip Bay.”

I rise to add some comments, and it is perhaps appropriate that I follow Senator Cameron, whose contribution I think was a valuable one. We are having this debate today whereas in my view it should have been had nine years ago when this country first committed troops to Afghanistan. We are here to clean up the consequences of the former government's reckless and indefinite commitment to an unwinnable war of doubtful motivation in Afghanistan.

The Australian Greens used the Afghanistan war debate today to strengthen their call for Parliament to be given the power to declare war.

The Greens believe the power to send Australian forces to war should rest in the hands of Parliament," Senator Scott Ludlam told the Senate today. "The former Government's reckless and indefinite commitment to an unwinnable war in Afghanistan is a stark reminder of the need for Parliament, as the body in which the will of the people is invested, to decide upon the deployment of the nation's defence forces."

The Greens negotiated to have a long overdue debate on Afghanistan. Scott used the opportunity to highlight his War Powers Bill, which requires the full Parliament to make a decision on whether or not Australia goes to war, rather than just the government of the day.

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