John Howard has recalled the moment the September 11 attacks unfolded in Washington, saying the shock of seeing the United States under threat changed the course of his prime ministership and left the world “never the same” again.
The former Australian prime minister was in the US for talks with President George W Bush when hijacked passenger aircraft struck New York’s World Trade Centre and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.
Howard had met Bush the previous day, during a three-hour discussion in which terrorism was mentioned only in general terms. By the following morning, it had become the defining issue of the day.
He was preparing to hold a press conference when the attacks began. His wife, Janette, and their son Tim were sightseeing near the Pentagon and had to be located and taken to safety as authorities attempted to understand the scale of the assault.
Speaking at an event hosted by the Australian National University’s National Security College, Howard said the attacks exposed a vulnerability in the US that had previously been difficult to imagine.
“Everybody has this image of [the United States] – the all-powerful, invulnerable, never to be perturbed, yet they are a nation that can be very vulnerable … and they felt very vulnerable,” he said.
Howard later addressed journalists from a bunker beneath the Australian Embassy in Washington. He has acknowledged that he was frightened during the crisis, while also describing the pressure on political leaders to remain composed.
“I was at least very, very concerned. I was scared,” he said in an interview marking the anniversary. But he added: “No, no. You can’t allow yourself ever to get scared.”
September 11 attacks changed Australia’s alliance with the US
Howard’s planned address to Congress, marking the 50th anniversary of the ANZUS security treaty, was cancelled and replaced by an emergency session. He became the only visiting guest, receiving a standing ovation from lawmakers.
On the journey home aboard Air Force Two, the first aircraft permitted to fly after the attacks, Howard contacted foreign minister Alexander Downer. Australia subsequently invoked the ANZUS Treaty for the first and, so far, only time.
The decision committed Australia to supporting the United States and helped shape the country’s military involvement in Afghanistan and later Iraq. Howard has said the attacks fundamentally altered Australia’s strategic outlook and strengthened the relationship between Canberra and Washington.
At the ANU event, he also reflected on the wider consequences of September 11, including the way it changed assumptions about national security and the vulnerability of Western democracies.
Asked whether the world was now safer than it had been on September 11, 2001, Howard said he could not guarantee it, although he believed Australia was safer than it had been at the time.
