Commandoes have flown from Australia to Dili by blackhawk to secure the airport.
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CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia sent commandos to East Timor's capital on Thursday ahead of the deployment of 1,300 troops to help restore law and order in the tiny nation.
Violence in the capital Dili has left at least six people dead in recent weeks and the arrival of Australian forces marks the second time Canberra has joined a U.N.-led mission to try to bring peace to East Timor.
Australia led a U.N.-backed intervention force in 1999 to quell violence by pro-Indonesian militias after East Timorese voted for independence from Jakarta. An estimated 1,000 people died in the violence.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard said the forward deployment of commandos had the full support of East Timor's government, which has formally asked Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Portugal for police and military support.
"These Australian forces will take immediate action to secure the perimeter of Dili international airport," Howard told Australian Parliament, adding the deployment followed a "significant" deterioration of security around Dili.
Five people were killed and hundreds fled their homes when sacked East Timorese military policemen and government troops clashed in Dili late last month. A sixth person was killed on Tuesday when the violence reignited.
Howard said sustained fighting had broken out between the two groups in recent days, with reports of a number of casualties.
Two navy ships were already heading toward East Timor, and the deputy defense chief was sent to Dili on Thursday to finalize details of the deployment.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said the Australian embassy in Dili had reported gunfire and people fleeing the city on Thursday.
He said he hoped foreign troops would stabilize the country to allow the cash-strapped government to talk to rebel troops, who claim their dismissal was unfair.
In New York, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, acting on behalf of East Timor's government, formally requested urgent U.N. Security Council approval of the offers of assistance.
But the council put off action for a few days after Russia, in a contentious closed-door session, argued the 15-nation body needed more information before it could vote, diplomats said.
"The failure to support the request of the government at this time is a pity," British Ambassador Emyr Jones Perry told Reuters. "We should have been stronger in our support for a country that is now in crisis."
Council members predicted action later this week on a resolution formally approving the offers of assistance.
In Lisbon, the Portuguese government said it would send 120 military police.
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said a detachment of troops was ready to deploy, but she was waiting for more details.
"It's very important not to walk into what is a factional dispute, in some respects, and be seen to be taking sides," Clark said on National Radio.
Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975 and in 1976 declared it an Indonesian province after centuries of Portuguese control.
U.N. peacekeepers left a year ago and the U.N. mission of 130 administrators, police and military advisers was scheduled to finish in East Timor on May 20, but its term was extended for a month after the recent riots.
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