Foreign Minister Penny Wong has confirmed that the Albanese government supports the United States’ military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, marking a significant shift in tone just hours after Canberra initially stopped short of endorsing the action.
‘The world has agreed Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon. So yes, we support action to prevent that. And that is what this is,’ she said on ABC’s AM show.
‘The big question is now what? And Australia says, like so many other countries, we do not want escalation and a full scale war and we continue to call for dialogue and diplomacy.’
When asked about the legality of the strikes, she said: ‘I think we are all clear that Iran … cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon. So yes, the government does support action to prevent that.’
Her comments came just hours after the Albanese government issued a statement that stopped short of supporting the strikes, instead calling for diplomatic efforts to resolve tensions.
‘We note the US president’s statement that now is the time for peace,’ he said.
‘The security situation in the region is highly volatile. We continue to call for de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy.
‘Australians in Israel and Iran and the region should continue to monitor public safety information provided by local authorities, including to shelter in place when required.
‘The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will be communicating directly with registered Australians about preparations for assisted departures.’
After days of growing escalation, Trump stunned the world by launching a massive military strike intended to terminate Iran’s quest for a doomsday nuclear weapon.
Trump ordered the devastating attack on Saturday and six B-2 stealth bombers dropped a dozen 30,000-pound ‘bunker buster’ bombs on Iran’s primary nuclear facility.
‘The strikes were a spectacular military success,’ Trump said in a late-night address to the nation from the White House.
Trump claimed the top secret uranium enrichment base hidden deep inside a mountain at Fordow, 80 miles south of Tehran, was flattened.
U.S. submarines also fired 30 Tomahawk missiles and wiped out two other Iranian nuclear sites at Natanz and Isfahan.
Iran’s foreign minister condemned the offensive as ‘extremely dangerous, lawless and criminal behavior.’
‘The events this morning are outrageous and will have everlasting consequences,’ Seyed Abbas Araghchi said. ‘Iran reserves all options to defend its sovereignty, interest, and people.’
By Sunday morning, Israel was being struck by a barrage of missiles as Iran launched a retaliatory attack.
A rescue worker could be seen helping children in Haifa and buildings in Tel Aviv suffered significant damage as a number of people were reported wounded.
