Australia on Thursday joined the United States in recognizing the Syrian opposition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people, dpa reported.
"It means that we can develop a plan to assist a post-civil war Syria," Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr said. "It means we can look, as we did with Libya, at ... rebuilding their health system for example, or help rebuild civil society."
Carr said Australia would not arm the rebels but would give 30 million Australian dollars (31 million US dollars) in humanitarian aid.