Australia says it supports US strike, calls for return to diplomacy
SYDNEY, June 23 (Reuters) - Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Monday that Canberra supported the United States strike on Iran and called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy.
"We support action that the U.S. has taken to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon," Wong said in a television interview with Seven Sunrise.
In a series of television and radio interviews on Monday, Wong said the strike was a unilateral action by its security ally the United States, and Australia was joining calls from Britain and other countries for Iran to return to the negotiating table.
"We do not want to see escalation," she told reporters in Canberra.
There are around 2,900 Australians in Iran and 1,300 in Iraq who are seeking to leave.
Australia closed its embassy in Tehran on Friday, after Wong spoke with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Australia has suspended bus evacuations from Israel after the U.S. strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, but is making preparations for potential evacuations if air space in Israel re-opens, Wong said.
Australia said it has sent two defence planes to the Middle East in non-combat roles to assist civilian evacuations.
New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Sunday he was examining the evidence surrounding Iran's nuclear enrichment programme, while Prime Minister Christopher Luxon called for a return to dialogue, Radio New Zealand reported.
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