Two-state solution in the Middle East the ‘only viable path to peace and security': Penny Wong
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has maintained Australia's position on a two-state solution in the Middle East amid Israel's ongoing war in Gaza.
'We maintain our position that we think that two states, which is not supported by the Netanyahu government, still remains the only viable path to peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians,' she said during a media conference on Wednesday.
This comes after Australia joined four other nations – Canada, New Zealand, Norway and the United Kingdom – in sanctioning two far-right Israeli ministers.
Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich face travel bans and will have their assets frozen after being accused of inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
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The Age
41 minutes ago
- The Age
The most important meeting of Albanese's career just got trickier
The federal government's decision to sanction two far-right Israeli minsters, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, has been a long time coming. It underscores the deep frustration with the Netanyahu government felt by some of Israel's oldest and most reliable allies at the intransigence of that country's prime minister and a growing disgust at the human toll of the war in Gaza. It's also an exquisite piece of timing, coming on the eve of Anthony Albanese's expected first meeting with Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada. But the PM has hardly signed up to a radical position. Joined by the Norwegians, the conservative prime minister of New Zealand, Christopher Luxon and a pair of centre-left leaders – UK's Keir Starmer and Canada's Mark Carney – the sanctions carry weight, as evidenced by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's almost immediate pushback, and the move is sure to be discussed if, or when, the president and the PM finally meet in person. Given that the only world leader Netanyahu appears to pay any significant heed to is Trump, leaders like Albanese have a part to play in both publicly and privately lobbying the president over ending the war in Gaza, and a possible, eventual two-state solution. At the time of writing, on the eve of a trip that will take him to Nadi, in Fiji, Seattle, Washington and Kananaskis, Canada for the G7 summit, a sit-down between the prime minister and the US president had not been confirmed. But it seems highly likely that the men will meet, if Trump turns up at the summit. Albanese will have bilateral meetings ('bilats') with world leaders including Carney and Starmer, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korea's new president, Lee Jae-myung. The Australian decision to sanction the Israeli ministers comes less than two weeks after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth called publicly for Australia to increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP, an increase of about $40 billion a year and a near-doubling from the current level of about 2 per cent. Hegseth's call received a lukewarm reception, at best, in Canberra with Albanese noting at the National Press Club this week that 'if the health minister or the comms minister or the infrastructure minister came to us and said, 'we want you to spend X percentage of GDP but we won't tell you what it's for' ... they wouldn't get far in an ERC [Expenditure Review Committee] process'. The prime minister's view is that his government will find the necessary equipment and capabilities for the Australia defence forces, rather than increasing its spending before it knows what it wants to spend it on. Taken together, the decision to sanction the two Israeli ministers and to push back against the American defence spending demands signal something more significant.
Sydney Morning Herald
an hour ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
The most important meeting of Albanese's career just got trickier
The federal government's decision to sanction two far-right Israeli minsters, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, has been a long time coming. It underscores the deep frustration with the Netanyahu government felt by some of Israel's oldest and most reliable allies at the intransigence of that country's prime minister and a growing disgust at the human toll of the war in Gaza. It's also an exquisite piece of timing, coming on the eve of Anthony Albanese's expected first meeting with Donald Trump on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada. But the PM has hardly signed up to a radical position. Joined by the Norwegians, the conservative prime minister of New Zealand, Christopher Luxon and a pair of centre-left leaders – UK's Keir Starmer and Canada's Mark Carney – the sanctions carry weight, as evidenced by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's almost immediate pushback, and the move is sure to be discussed if, or when, the president and the PM finally meet in person. Given that the only world leader Netanyahu appears to pay any significant heed to is Trump, leaders like Albanese have a part to play in both publicly and privately lobbying the president over ending the war in Gaza, and a possible, eventual two-state solution. At the time of writing, on the eve of a trip that will take him to Nadi, in Fiji, Seattle, Washington and Kananaskis, Canada for the G7 summit, a sit-down between the prime minister and the US president had not been confirmed. But it seems highly likely that the men will meet, if Trump turns up at the summit. Albanese will have bilateral meetings ('bilats') with world leaders including Carney and Starmer, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korea's new president, Lee Jae-myung. The Australian decision to sanction the Israeli ministers comes less than two weeks after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth called publicly for Australia to increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP, an increase of about $40 billion a year and a near-doubling from the current level of about 2 per cent. Hegseth's call received a lukewarm reception, at best, in Canberra with Albanese noting at the National Press Club this week that 'if the health minister or the comms minister or the infrastructure minister came to us and said, 'we want you to spend X percentage of GDP but we won't tell you what it's for' ... they wouldn't get far in an ERC [Expenditure Review Committee] process'. The prime minister's view is that his government will find the necessary equipment and capabilities for the Australia defence forces, rather than increasing its spending before it knows what it wants to spend it on. Taken together, the decision to sanction the two Israeli ministers and to push back against the American defence spending demands signal something more significant.
West Australian
3 hours ago
- West Australian
Opposition leader Sussan Ley accuses Penny Wong of overstepping in ‘unprecedented' Israeli minister sanctions
Opposition leader Sussan Ley has accused the Albanese Government of overstepping by slapping 'unprecedented' sanctions on two Israeli Government ministers. She accused Penny Wong of acting 'unilaterally' in imposing Magnitsky-style sanctions on National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The Albanese Government joined the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Norway to sanction the pair, accusing them of 'inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank'. 'It is unprecedented to, as a government, take actions, sanctions on members of a democratically elected government. It appears that Penny Wong acted unilaterally on this,' Ms Ley told Sky New on Thursday. 'The Magnitsky sanctions were never designed to be used in this way, but to take action against terrorist regimes and bad actors.' The Magnitsky legislation allows governments to impose targeted sanctions, such as asset freezes and travel bans, on foreign individuals responsible for serious human rights abuses or corruption. Australia has only selectively deployed the sanctions, mostly on Russian individuals, since they first came into effect in December 2021 with the first set handed down in March 2022. The Foreign Minister and Labor colleagues have defended the measure, with Ms Wong saying the duo had 'extremist rhetoric' including 'appalling and dangerous' calls for the forced displacement of Palestinians and the creation of new Israeli settlements. Former Labor defence minister Joel Fitzgibbon also openly labelled them 'extremists.' However when asked whether the Government had 'overstepped the mark', Ms Ley bluntly responded: 'Yes we do. Yes we do'. Ms Ley's criticism of the collective move was echoed by her Coalition team on Thursday, with many calling for a briefing on the decision which they warned could have broader implications. 'We want to understand more deeply the rationale behind the government's decision making,' Nationals Senate Leader Bridget McKenzie said on Thursday. 'I think these sanctions do go against the intent of the Magnitsky sanction regime.' Opposition legal affairs spokesman Julian Leeser has warned if the standard for triggering Magnitsky sanctions had been weakened it could impact Australia's standing abroad. 'This is a very serious step. When you read the government's statement, it suggests that it's actually lowered the threshold for applying sanctions,' he told the ABC on Thursday. 'Because these sanctions are being applied because of public comments of the two Israeli ministers and the big question here is whether this is a new standard that will be applied to the public comments of officials from other countries.' Shadow foreign minister Michaelia Cash called the sanctions a 'very serious development' and said they should meet 'a very high threshold.' While backing the sanctions and defending them as 'carefully considered', Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said he hoped Australia and Israel would 'continue our friendship'. 'I mean we want to continue our friendship with Israel, let me be clear about that,' he said. 'We've worked very carefully in relation to taking this step over a period of time. 'We've done this in combination with the United Kingdom in combination with Canada and with other nations.' His shadow counterpart Angus Taylor went as far to question whether Ms Wong's call teamed with Labor's refusal to lift the defence budget after US pressure had prompted the Trump Administration to review the AUKUS partnership. But Marles hit back at his 'breathless press conference' and said the Coalition needed to 'take a breath' on the AUKUS probe which he downplayed as a 'natural' decision of any new government. Former Liberal politician and ex-US ambassador Arthur Sinodinos also rejected any link, noting Marles had publicly said he'd been aware a review was coming for weeks. Both sides of politics have said ultimately they wanted to see a ceasefire and long-term end to the Gaza conflict.
