Canberra, 25 June 2010

New Australia Prime Minister Julia Gillard started her first full-day in office pledging to end a mining tax row threatening $20 billion in investment and assuring Washington that Australia was committed to Afghanistan.

Australia's Labor government appointed Gillard as prime minister on Thursday fearing defeat at elections later this year, as voters deserted incumbent Kevin Rudd over his handling of the mining tax row and a failed climate policy. Global miners such as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto say a planned 40% "super profits" tax will damage the resource-dependent economy which underpinned Australia through the global financial crisis.

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