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Sky News AU
a day ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese stresses ‘respect' for world leaders after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls him weak
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has maintained he treats leaders with 'respect' after his Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke suggested Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saw strength in blowing people up. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has declared he treats leaders of other countries with respect, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called him 'weak'. The Israel-Australia relationship has fallen to pieces in the weeks since the Albanese government decided to recognise Palestinian statehood ahead of a peace deal. This led Mr Netanyahu to calling Mr Albanese 'weak' and accusing him of abandoning Jewish Australians. Mr Albanese has downplayed personal offence, noting that Mr Netanyahu has made similar remarks about other leaders. 'I treat leaders of other countries with respect and I engage with them in a diplomatic way,' he told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday. 'I don't take these things personally… I engage with people diplomatically. He (Mr Netanyahu) has had similar things to say about other leaders. 'What I say is that Israel, of course, increasingly, there is global concern because people want to see an end to the cycle of violence that we have seen for far too long.' — Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) August 19, 2025 The remarks were made after Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke made extraordinary comments about Mr Netanyahu, saying he conflated strength with violence. 'Strength is not measured by how many people you can blow up, or how many children you can leave hungry,' Mr Burke told ABC RN on Wednesday. 'Strength is much better measured by exactly what prime minister Anthony Albanese has done.' The Albanese government recently cancelled the visa of Israeli MP Simcha Rothman over concerns his presence could spark counter-protests in Australia. Israel then revoked visas of Australian diplomats to the Palestinian Authority in a move which Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said was 'unjustified'. Mr Netanyahu further escalated the row in a letter to Mr Albanese, accusing Australia of 'pouring fuel on this antisemitic fire', urging action against antisemitism. 'It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement… antisemitism is a cancer. It spreads when leaders stay silent. It retreats when leaders act,' Mr Netanyahu said in the letter. It was an unprecedented letter from the highest level of the Israeli government to Australia, which has in the past been a strong ally of the democratic Jewish nation. Mr Netanyahu outlined several recent incidents of antisemitism that have plagued the Australian Jewish community. 'In June, vandals defaced a historic Melbourne synagogue with graffiti praising Iran and calling to 'Free Palestine',' Mr Netanyahu wrote. 'In July, arsonists targeted the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation during Shabbat dinner, forcing twenty worshippers to flee for their lives.' Mr Netanyahu ended his personally-signed letter with a final comment that said: 'History will not forgive hesitation. It will honour action.' The letter comes after escalating diplomatic tensions between the Albanese government and Israel.
Courier-Mail
11-07-2025
- Business
- Courier-Mail
US politics live: White House Chief-of-Staff sheds light on Trump-Musk bromance implosion
US President Donald Trump has threatened to introduce 200 per cent tariffs on pharmaceuticals – one of Australia's biggest exports to the US. He also unveiled plans for a 50 per cent tariff on copper — a move that is expected to smash big Australian miners like BHP and Rio Tinto. Treasurer Jim Chalmers said these were 'very concerning developments' and the government was 'urgently seeking more detail'. 'It's been a feature of recent months that we've had these sorts of announcements out of DC,' he told ABC RN 'Our pharmaceuticals industry is much more exposed to the US market, and that's why we're urgently seeking some more detail on what's been announced.' Originally published as US politics live: White House Chief-of-Staff sheds light on Trump-Musk implosion
Sky News AU
02-07-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Nyrstar Australia asks for government handout as it loses 'tens of millions a month', struggles to compete against China
The CEO of a major Australian manufacturer has begged various state and federal governments for a handout as losses mount to "tens of million a month" while China allegedly distorts the market. Metal processor Nyrstar Australia has struggled with loss making ventures in South Australia and Tasmania while its old infrastructure puts it behind competing nations. The lead and zinc refiner's boss Matthew Howell has claimed that China is 'distorting global markets' and 'eroding global operating margins' which has 'imperilled the commercial viability of domestic processing' across western nations. 'Without decisive and targeted public policy support to address the imbalance in the global refining market and modernise infrastructure, Australia risks falling further behind in this critical minerals processing,' Mr Howell said on ABC RN. 'And worse, we may lose our existing sovereign refining capability in zinc and lead and of course once lost, our ability to rebuild our smelting infrastructure and workforce pipeline would be near impossible due to cost, time and skills lost.' The boss of Nyrstar, which employs more than 1400 people across Tasmania and South Australia, said government support would be critical as the company battles with China's 'distortion'. 'What we need to do is undertake a 22-month engineering feasibility study and while we do that we are operating in a heavily distorted market where we are losing tens of millions a month because of the actions of state actors,' Mr Howell said. 'That's why we believe it is right and proper for governments to provide transitionary support to protect these strategically important industries.' Mr Howell has claimed the Chinese government subsidises companies to purchase Australian materials at prices local smelters could not afford. China then subsidises the processing of these materials and enforces export controls on the finished metals. A spokesperson for Industry Minister Tim Ayres said the government was looking into the challenges facing Nyrstar. 'We will maintain our focus on how best to secure our critical minerals and strategic materials supply, including the contribution of zinc and lead refining to production of valuable by-products,' the spokesperson said, per the Australian Financial Review.
Sky News AU
26-06-2025
- Business
- Sky News AU
Top strategic analyst says US-Australia alliance ‘in its worst shape' after government explored legality of Iran Strikes
The US-Australia alliance is in a critical condition, according to a leading strategic analyst after Finance Minister Katy Gallagher let slip the federal government had ordered legal advice into President Trump's strikes on Iranian nuclear hubs. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was slammed for his belated support of US President Donald Trump's coordinated strikes against three significant Iranian nuclear facilities. Mr Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong fronted the media on Monday morning more than 24 hours after the attack, saying they backed the US' strikes but stressed they did not want to see the regional conflict escalate into all-out war. However, in a major development to the saga, Finance Minister and close confidant of the Prime Minister Katy Gallagher revealed on Thursday that the government had ordered advice on whether the US' strikes against Iranian nuclear sites were legal. 'Look, obviously advice has been sought by – I mean, in government, as we are working through some of these issues, we get a whole lot of advice across the government,' Senator Gallagher said on ABC RN. When questioned if acquiring legal advice reflected thinking within the government that the US' strikes were illegal under international law, Ms Gallagher said that it was a routine formality. 'Well, we receive – for example, when the NSC (National Security Committee) meets, we get a whole lot of advice from across government about a whole range of things, and we don't really go into those matters publicly.' Peter Jennings, one of the county's most eminent strategic analysts said the Albanese government seeking legal advice on the matter was 'not the act of a friendly ally' and stated he was 'surprised that they need to ask a question at all.' 'I think it's very clear that America was launching these strikes in defence of Israel and in defence of America itself, and they were attacking a regime which has literally since 1979 been calling for death to America and death to Israel,' Mr Jennings said. Mr Jennings, who served as executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute from 2012-22 said that by focussing on the legality of the strike the government was 'wilfully blind to the realities of what's going on in the Middle East right now' He outlined the move would be considered extremely provocative by US officials and would 'do serious damage to Australia's position in DC.' Ms Gallagher refused to share the nature or outcome of the advice and insisted that the government endorsed the US' strikes against Iran. 'I'm not going to go into the advice the government receives, but I can be clear, and I think ministers who have appeared on your program and the PM and the Foreign Minister have been very clear that we support the strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities,' she said. Mr Jennings said the emerging rift between the two countries was extremely concerning and stated 'the alliance is in its worst shape since the Whitlam/Nixon period which was more than 50 years ago.' 'One wonders then if they are trying to find a reason to distance themselves from the American strikes, because frankly you can create legal advice which will support the strikes, or also that says the strikes were illegal,' Mr Jennings said. 'This was an unnecessary step, something that the government could easily have supported on the basis of Iran's nuclear program and its international support of terrorism.' 'I just think it just shows that they're not trying to be an ally, they're trying to be a critic, and this is just not going to work with the Trump administration.' Mr Albanese, unlike British PM Keir Starmer, was not notified of the US' attacks on Iran before they were carried out, with the Prime Minister confirming he had not spoken to the US President after he abruptly left the G7 summit in Canada a day before the two were due to meet.
West Australian
25-06-2025
- Politics
- West Australian
Australian news and politics live: Gallagher defends Australia's defence spending after Trump pressure
Scroll down for the latest news and updates. Opposition Leader Sussan Ley says the Coalition's new approach to emissions reduction is focused on practical outcomes rather than meeting a fixed deadline. 'It's iterative and it's continuous, and it will develop a plan … underpinned by two goals. That we have a stable energy grid which provides affordable and reliable power for households and businesses, and that we reduce emissions so that we're playing our part in the global effort and the global challenge of climate change,' Ley told ABC RN on Thursday morning. 'So it's not ending at a certain point in time. It's not landing on a certain date. It's an important working group, and it will reflect the wide range of views on energy policy across Australia, and it will also hold up a mirror to this government, because they've made big promises on energy. 'We're going to hold them to account, and we're going to make sure that they explain to the Australian people how they are on track to reduce the cost of electricity. We haven't seen that so far.' Opposition Leader Sussan Ley says the Liberal party must do more to recruit, retain, and support women—but remains open-minded about whether quotas are the answer. 'I am agnostic on the specific methods to make it happen, but I am a zealot that it does actually happen,' Ley told ABC RN. She explained, 'Our Liberal party is a federated body, and it doesn't have a top-down instruction method … We've got state divisions. Now, some state divisions might choose to implement quotas. If they do, that's fine. If others don't, that's also fine.' 'What I made very clear yesterday is what is not fine is not having enough women. So as the first woman leader of our federal party, let me send the clearest possible message: we do need to do better. We've got to recruit better. We've got to retain better. We've got to support better.' As the conflict in the Middle East continues to create uncertainty, thousands of Australians have registered their intention to return home from Israel and Iran. Overnight, a group of Australians landed in Sydney after finally getting out of Tel Aviv on a RAAF jet. Another group is expected to arrive later on Thursday. 'We are providing further assisted travel. We've had defence assets in the region ready to go for when airspace opens up,' said Finance Minister Katy Gallagher on ABC News Breakfast. 'We had 4,000 Australians register in both Iran and Israel who have indicated they would like to come home. And so, those flights have helped with that. As airspace opens and more commercial options are available, we would expect to see more Australians coming home through those options as well.' 'We have DFAT staff assisting on the border of Azerbaijan and they will continue to be there. It is difficult. We are hoping that if the ceasefire holds, we would be able to see further options available to people. Because obviously they are the ones that are really wanting to return home as soon as possible.' Australia is facing renewed pressure to ramp up defence spending as US President Donald Trump pushes for NATO countries to lift their budgets to 5 per cent of GDP, but Finance Minister Katy Gallagher says the government is focused on targeted investment. Australia's defence spending is projected to reach about 2.4 per cent of GDP by the mid-2030s, while other NATO memebers are rapidly accelerating their military budgets in response to global uncertainty. 'We are actually already very substantially increasing our investment in defence. We've found room in tight budgets for an extra $11bn over the forward estimates and around $57.5bn over the course of the next decade,' Gallagher told ABC News Breakfast on Thursday morning. 'We have been increasing defence spending. When we came to government, it wasn't what it should have been and delivering the capability needed. We've put billions of dollars into defence. We understand the environment we're working in. We take the advice of our agencies seriously. Gallagher also stressed, 'It is a balancing act. But the government's job is to make sure that all areas of government are funded properly, including defence. Those choices are on my desk every day. We'll continue to make them in the best interests of Australia.'
