Australia's most recent defence attaché to Jakarta says the prospect of conflict with our nearest neighbour is not realistic and that turning asylum seeker boats back to Indonesia can work.

Last week Prime Minister Kevin Rudd warned that the Opposition's "stop the boats" policy could spark a "diplomatic crisis" and "conflict" with Indonesia.

Mr Rudd has today flown out for talks with Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Retired Brigadier Gary Hogan, who finished his three-year posting in Jakarta last year, says it is not realistic to talk about risking conflict with our northern neighbour.

"I think the strength of our strategic partnership would make that an unlikely scenario," he said.

Mr Hogan said he believes the Opposition's pledge to turn vessels around can work with the help of the Indonesian military.

"I do think it's possible for us to push back boats or to intercept boats and to lead them back to their source," he told ABC News 24.

"We can't do it on our own, we must do it with the Indonesians and I think we can do it with the Indonesians.

"I think it's possible for us to get that level of cooperation with the Indonesian navy, in fact we already have that level of cooperation with the navy in the eastern end of the Indonesian archipelago."

Mr Hogan said Mr Rudd's recent comments would have been greeted with bemusement in Jakarta.

"I think the Indonesians won't even raise an eyelid. There won't be any ruffled feathers, I wouldn't think, for the Prime Minister to smooth in his meetings later today."

Rudd invites Abbott to people-smuggling briefings

Meanwhile, Mr Rudd has written to the Opposition Leader offering him a "suite" of high-level national security briefings on the vexing issue of people smuggling.

The ABC has obtained a letter that the Prime Minister sent to Tony Abbott yesterday.

In it, Mr Rudd offers to organise a range of confidential security briefings "recognising your particular interest in border integrity matters".

Indonesian government officials have repeatedly said they would not accept the boats back.

Mr Rudd offered briefings for Mr Abbott, beginning with the head of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the National Security Advisor, to provide "information on the coordination of all the relevant agencies working on countering people smuggling".

Mr Rudd suggests that those discussions could be followed by talks with nine other top-level officials, including the Commissioner of the Australian Federal Police and the heads of the Customs service, ASIO and the Immigration Department.

The Prime Minister has offered to organise the briefings for any day this month in Canberra and has asked for a response by Monday.

However, a spokesman for Mr Abbott has accused the Prime Minister of not taking national security seriously, given that the letter has been leaked to the media.