Wong’s 24 hours: a sharp talk with Israel, love from EU and NATO, flowers in Ukraine, and a warning about Russia’s help to North Korea in nuclear arms

Penny Wong’s whistlestop tour of Europe has seen her arrive in Ukraine to warn of Russia’s help to North Korea.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong during her visit to Strasbourg and Brussels

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong says she “reflected” to her Israeli counterpart Gideon Sa’ar that many other countries had been calling for a ceasefire, the release of hostages and for aid to flow into Gaza in a heated phone call on Tuesday.

Senator Wong spoke to Mr Sa’ar on Tuesday and the two engaged in “a sharp verbal clash” about Australia’s weakening of support for the Jewish state in its darkest hour.

“The Australian minister, who is among the most anti-Israeli in her party, accused Israel of not doing enough humanitarian work for the Arabs of Gaza,” the Israel Hayom newspaper said.

Senator Wong was asked about the dispute as she arrived in Ukraine by train on Wednesday morning, and she said Australia’s position was similar to some other like-minded democracies.

“I would say a number of things, but first, I would say Australia, alongside the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Japan and many other countries have been calling for a ceasefire, for the release of hostages and for the provision of aid into Gaza,’’ she said.

“That is the position we have been articulating, and that’s the position that I reflected to the Israeli Foreign Minister.

“What I would say is this, we hope there will be a ceasefire soon, which enables the release of hostages and the aid to flow into Gaza, because we know that the humanitarian catastrophe is so great.’’

Senator Wong has been on a 24-hour whistlestop tour across Europe, meeting with the Deputy Commissioner of the European Commission in Strasbourg France and then to NATO headquarters in Brussels, before arriving in Ukraine.

Upon being greeted by an Ukrainian protocol officer, Senator Wong said she was privileged to be in Ukraine, arriving at a “pivotal and critical” moment in Russia’s illegal and immoral war against Ukraine. She said the war mattered to Australia because of the principles of international law and because security in Europe affected Australia’s security.

“We saw that in the way in which we now see North Korean fighters fighting for Russia, a sign of Russia’s escalation and Russia’s desperation,’’ she said.

“ And we are deeply concerned about what North Korea is getting for this assistance, whether or not Russia will be assisting North Korea in its illegal nuclear industry, which would be a breach of the UN Charter and would destabilise and be dangerous for so much of the world. “

She added: “Australia stands with Ukraine. We are proud to be the largest non-NATO military contributor to Ukraine. I’m very honoured and privileged to be here. This country and its people have demonstrated extraordinary courage, and we often talk about the importance of freedom … the Ukrainian people fight for their freedom every day.”

Senator Wong told The Australian just before her meeting with NATO leader Mark Rutte that Australia was poised to provide greater financial and other assistance to Gaza.

But a short time earlier Mr Sa’ar expressed his disappointment to Senator Wong that Australia had downgraded support for Israel in international forums “in its most difficult year, when it has fought against its bitterest enemies”.

He condemned Senator Wong for her move last week to compare democratic Israel with the dictatorships of China and Russia, the newspaper said.

“Israel is a Western democracy that maintains the rule of law, has an independent judiciary and adheres to international law. In the past year, Israel has fought the radical axis led by Iran, which is supported by Russia and China,” Mr Sa’ar told the newspaper.

He also demanded “decisive action” by the Albanese government over the torching of Melbourne’s Adass Israel Synagogue, and protested against Labors’ recent denial of a visa for former Israeli justice minister Ayelet Shaked on character grounds.

“How would you react if we acted like this towards a former minister from Australia?” Mr Sa’ar reportedly said to Senator Wong.

There has been a breakthrough in ceasefire talks involving Hamas and Israel, with both sides edging closer to a deal that would end the conflict that began with a brutal Hamas attack on October 7 last year.

“It is very welcome news that there is progress,’’ Senator Wong said.

“We are deeply concerned, as are many countries, about the catastrophic humanitarian situation and so of course, we are willing to step up to provide assistance. A ceasefire would also enable the return of the hostages who are still being held by Hamas a year after the horrific attacks.’’

About 96 Israeli hostages are still being held by Hamas in Gaza, but only 62 or so are believed to be still alive.

The proposed deal, brokered by the US, Qatar and Egypt, allows for the release of half of the hostages in the initial two-month stage of a ceasefire, while Israel would release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, including those serving long prison sentences for serious crimes. But a significant component of the ceasefire is for ‘’hugely increased” aid to Gaza to address an overwhelming humanitarian crisis for Gaza’s 2.3 million people, many of whom have been displaced during the conflict.

It is understood Australia would be in a position to help with supplies and money, possibly funnelled through recognised aid organisations.

The Gaza border with Egypt at the Rafah crossing may be reopened, under the control of the Palestinian Authority and under the observation of the European Union, so that Palestinians will be able to leave. Israeli soldiers would still have a presence in northern Gaza and along the Philadelphi corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border, but would withdraw from Gaza’s main towns and the coastal road.

Various officials involved in the negations have said the talks have entered a “decisive and final phase”.

On Tuesday Ms Wong met with European Parliament Vice-President Kaja Kallas in Strasbourg before flying to Brussels for the closed-door NATO discussions with Mr Rutte.

Ms Kallas said that with the tensions in the world being very much interconnected, what happened in Europe also had an impact elsewhere.

Ms Kallas said: “If we are not strong enough all the dictators or aggressors or would-be aggressors in the world are carefully taking notes that this pays off. We don’t want to end up in a world where might makes right again.”

She added: “We have to co-operate so that we can avoid bigger tensions and global conflicts’’.

Ms Wong said the meetings were taking place “at a fairly difficult time – that’s an understatement’’. Afterwards Ms Wong said, in response to news about China’s military exercises off Vietnam, that ‘‘we always urge peace and stability in our region and Australia consistently articulates our belief that the UN convention and the law of the sea is what countries should abide by”.

She also noted that Britain had committed $100m for the new regime in Syria after Bashar al-Assad fled to Russia.

“The UK has a long and deep historic set of relationships and responsibilities in the Middle East. And that’s why we are very pleased to work with them to gain their insights about what the progress is,’’ she said.