US acted alone in Iran, Albanese declares while abandoning neutral stance on attack

Australia has given full support to US President Donald Trump’s decision to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the US acted alone as he dodged questions about whether he knew about the attacks in advance.

Albanese’s unequivocal backing of Trump’s strikes on Monday marked a shift from the government’s more neutral position, given a day earlier, when an unnamed spokesman made a statement that called for peace. The prime minister said there had been no change in Australia’s stance as he fought against accusations of being passive in response to the escalation in the conflict over the weekend.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong faced repeated questions about when Australia was informed of the strike.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“We aren’t a central player in this conflict, that’s just a fact. And what we do is we run an orderly, stable government,” Albanese said.

“The world has long agreed that Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon. And we support action to prevent that. That is what this is. The US action was directed at specific sites central to Iran’s nuclear program. We don’t want escalation and a full-scale war.”

But the early ambiguity demonstrated how Albanese, a leader of Labor’s left who opposed the invasion of Iraq, has been forced to walk a delicate line between supporting a Trump-led US as Australia’s closest strategic ally while advocating for diplomacy.

As he faced a series of questions alongside Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Monday, Albanese did not say whether he was told of the US attacks in advance, nor whether Australia assisted via its facilities at Pine Gap in the Northern Territory.

“We don’t talk about intelligence, obviously, but we have made very clear this was unilateral action taken by the United States,” Albanese repeatedly answered.

Albanese and Wong did not say whether they thought the action was legal, as experts debated whether Trump was justified in striking Iran under international law.

Nor did the prime minister disclose whether he had seen specific intelligence showing Iran was about to acquire a nuclear weapon – the justification for the US strike – although he said there was clear evidence Iran was engaging in a nuclear program.

“When President Trump left the G7, [he] made it clear that Iran had an opportunity to comply. They chose not to. And there have been consequences of that,” Albanese said.

Wong made similar comments on ABC radio on Monday morning. “We know that the UN nuclear watchdog has said Iran is accumulating highly enriched uranium at almost military level, enough for the manufacturing of several nuclear weapons. Now we have all agreed, the world has agreed, Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon,” she said.

“Like so many other countries, we do not want escalation and a full-scale war, and we continue to call for dialogue and diplomacy.”

In response to questions about legality, Wong said: “We are all clear that Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon. We all know what the United Nations nuclear watchdog has said. So yes, the government does support action to prevent that.”

Labor’s shift from neutrality to full support underscores the ongoing importance Australia’s close alliance with the US, which has come under recent scrutiny as Trump cancelled last week’s meeting with Albanese at the G7, and the Pentagon conducts a review of the AUKUS agreement.

“We do not want escalation and a full-scale war, and we continue to call for dialogue and diplomacy.”

Foreign Minister Penny Wong

The Coalition’s acting foreign affairs spokesman, Andrew Hastie, said the prime minister should have spoken sooner. When Trump confirmed the strikes on the weekend, the Australian government gave a statement that reiterated Iran’s missile and ballistic missile programs were dangerous, but did not mention the US decision to attack them.

“I think the prime minister has been too slow and too silent and too passive. Yesterday, we only heard from a spokesperson from the government, which was a very ambiguous statement,” Hastie said on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing program.

But he otherwise confirmed bipartisan support for the US and the government’s response, including to questions about legality. “I take what Penny Wong said this morning, that we support the strike because we cannot have a nuclear Iran,” he said.

Hastie also defended Albanese’s response to questioning about Australia’s knowledge of the events. “It was unilateral action taken by the United States government. I think that is a satisfactory answer by the prime minister,” he said.

Opposition acting foreign affairs spokesman Andrew Hastie.Credit: James Brickwood

But Labor’s grassroots membership that opposes AUKUS criticised the government’s response. “We cannot be dragged into another US-led war in the Middle East built on lies and half-truths,” said Marcus Strom, the national convenor of Labor against War.

“In 2003, Labor leader Simon Crean showed courage and resolve in opposing the US invasion of Iraq. Labor members expect the same from Anthony Albanese and Penny Wong. We insist the government reverses this position and cuts any intelligence support.”

The Greens urged the government to distance itself from the US. “We have seen statements made, included by our own government, that want to curry favour with the Trump administration. It would be far better if the statements were based on the most credible international evidence,” said Greens Senator David Shoebridge.

“You would have thought a country like Australia – which is repeatedly saying it believes in an international rule-based order – would be able to have our foreign minister say clearly whether or not she thought these attacks were a breach of international law.”

The Iranian ambassador to Australia, Ahmad Sadeghi, condemned the US attacks, describing them in an interview with Nine News as showing a “treacherous and deceptive approach toward diplomacy”.

Wong confirmed on Monday that 2900 Australians in Iran and 1300 in Israel had registered for consular assistance.

She said there were reports that Israeli airspace might open for a limited period, which the government would try to use to get people out. Australia has promised to help Australians in Iran who can reach the Azerbaijan border.

With Andrew Probyn.

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