HMAS Darwin, a guided missile frigate, will replace the HMAS Adelaide which has been in the Gulf since August as part of Australia's contribution to the US-led coalition forces in Iraq.

It will be the Darwin's fifth mission to the Gulf and its task will include guarding Iraq's offshore export oil terminals and monitoring, intercepting and boarding vessels suspected of illegally trafficking oil, Defense Minister Robert Hill said.

"The men and women in HMAS Darwin have been working hard in preparation for this deployment and I know they will do an excellent job," Hill said during a farewell ceremony.

The Darwin was most recently deployed in the Gulf between November 2002 and April 2003.

Australia contributed 2,000 troops to the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and currently has about 850 soldiers stationed in and around the country.

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