diff --git a/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/taskdefs/ImportTask.java b/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/taskdefs/ImportTask.java
index 24db70c15..4ef227785 100644
--- a/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/taskdefs/ImportTask.java
+++ b/src/main/org/apache/tools/ant/taskdefs/ImportTask.java
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ public class ImportTask extends Task {
      *                 default is false
      */
     public void setOptional(boolean optional) {
-        this.optional = true;
+        this.optional = optional;
     }
 
     /**