SYDNEY Dec 5 Kyodo Prime Minister...

SYDNEY Dec 5 Kyodo

Prime Minister John Howard said Thursday he would not apologize for commenting he would be prepared to launch preemptive action onward foreign-based terrorists to impede an attack on Australian soil.

''I said what I said remarkably carefully,'' he told reporters in Canberra. ''You merely apologize when you have something to apologize for.''

The prime minister's remarks Sunday about preemptive strikes, and the ne to review international law in subordination to the United Nations Charter to better deal with terrorism, quickly attracted the ire of directions in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

''I would invite those who criticize that statement to have a expect at it, and to have a anticipate particularly at the observation I made that you would use a capacity if there were no alternative, I made that exceedingly clear,'' Howard said.

The prime minister made ''exactly'' the same explanations in June and ''didn't secure boo out of anybody onward that,'' he said.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Thursday he met with 10 Asian ambassadors in Canberra late Wednesday to explain Howard's comments

''A big point I made to the ambassadors last night, which they with equal reason strongly agreed with, is that we ne to continue to work together as a united team against terrorism and that's in all of our interests,'' Downer told the Australian Associated Press

The minister said he has assured the ambassadors that Australia is not preparing unilateral action or planning bombing raids or to land crowds in Southeast Asia, he said. ''It is absolutely preposterous to give an inkling of that.''

The meeting with the ambassadors had been ''very constructive'' and ''they're all accurately happy,'' Downer said.

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