Latest news with #PineGap
ABC News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Australia backs US strikes on Iran while urging return to diplomacy
Australia has given its support to US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities but has repeated calls for de-escalation to avoid a wider war. Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Monday Australia was in favour of any action to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, after the government had initially adopted a more cautious tone, declining to give its explicit support. "The world has agreed Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon, so yes, we support action to prevent that, and that is what this is," she told ABC AM, citing a UN watchdog finding that Iran had acquired enriched uranium at "almost military level". Senator Wong said Australia had not received a request for assistance and had been advised that Pine Gap, a shared military facility, had not been engaged. While she declined to speculate on the response to any such request, she said Australia was "deeply concerned" about the prospect of escalation. "The key question for the international community is what happens next … It's obviously a very precarious, risky and dangerous moment the world faces," she said. "Now is the time for diplomacy. Now is the time for de-escalation and that call is to all parties." The National Security Committee, comprised of key ministers, will meet in Canberra this morning. Australia's explicit expression of support for the strikes goes a step further than allies including the UK, Canada and New Zealand, although all three countries have emphasised the risk of Iran gaining nuclear weapons. The Coalition supported the strikes on Sunday and also says it does not want further war, but has put the onus on Iran to negotiate peace. "We want to see Iran come to the negotiating table to verify where that 400 kilos of enriched uranium is," Andrew Hastie told ABC Radio National. Mr Hastie, who is acting as the opposition's foreign affairs spokesperson, said the Australian government had been "flat-footed" but he was pleased by the condemnation. "I'm glad to see that Penny Wong has essentially endorsed our position and I'm glad we have bipartisanship on this," he said. Dave Sharma, a Liberal senator and former Australian ambassador to Israel, said the government's response was "underwhelming and perplexing" on Sunday and that support for the strikes "should be a straightforward position for Australia to adopt". The Greens are against the strike, with defence spokesperson David Shoebridge calling Donald Trump a "warmonger" and demanding Australia clarify it will not get involved. "You cannot bomb your way to peace … and the people who are always going to pay the price are the ordinary people on the street," he said. Paul Foley, a former Australian ambassador to Iran, said Australia's response was "appropriate" but urged a return to diplomacy "as rapidly as possible". "We're moving into uncharted territory … There's a range of factors to be balanced by the Australian and other governments," he said. Mr Foley speculated there were three categories of response from Iran — to do nothing, to launch a "limited" response, or to attack US assets or facilities in the region. "A deal is still possible if both sides want one badly enough. President Trump came to office promising to be a peacemaker, and Iran also has indicated, in the past, a preference for going down the diplomatic path." Senator Wong said Australian officials were stationed at the land border in Azerbaijan to assist any Australians seeking to depart Iran while airspace remained closed, urging them to leave if possible while acknowledging this was "risky". I understand this is a very difficult time for the Australian-Iranian community," she said. About 2,900 Australians in Iran and 1,300 in Israel have registered their desire to leave, and the minister said Australia would move to assist those in Israel to depart by air now that airspace was reopening.
News.com.au
7 hours ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Australia finally takes a stance on Iran attack
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has finally confirmed Australia supports the bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities but has refused to say whether Australia's Pine Gap military base was used in the US attack. Nearly 24 hours after the US President said he had 'totally obliterated' three sites and the Coalition called for 'clarity', the Albanese Government has been forced to clarify whether Australia supported the decision. Speaking on Sunrise, Labor frontbencher Tanya Plibersek was the first to speak out after the Albanese Government did not conduct any television interviews on Sunday about the bombings. 'Well, yes, we do support the strikes, and I know the foreign minister is going to be in your program later. We certainly don't want to see full scale war in the Middle East,'' Ms Plibersek said. On Sunday, the Albanese Government released a statement but did not do any on camera interviews after the attacks. 'We have been clear that Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program has been a threat to international peace and security,'' the statement said. 'We note the US President's statement that now is the time for peace.' Foreign Minister Penny Wong's first television interview was on the Today show on Monday morning where she was immediately asked to clarify that statement. 'Why did it take so long for you to publicly state your position?' Today show host Karl Stefanovic asked. 'I don't accept that characterisation, Karl. I'm here talking to you now,'' Senator Wong replied. 'That's 24 hours after the world reacted,'' Stefanovic countered. 'Well, I think you saw a statement from the government. Yesterday. The Deputy Prime Minister was obviously up in the morning. 'We support action to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon. And that is what this is. So we support action to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon.' Questions over Pine Gap But questions remain over whether or not the US used the Pine Gap facility in the attacks. 'Was the US military base in Pine Gap used in this operation?' host Stefanovic asked. But Senator Wong dodged the question. 'You wouldn't expect me to comment on intelligence matters,'' she said. 'But what I would say is the US has made it clear this was a unilateral strike.' In other words, she declined to answer the question on Pine Gap but stressed the US acted alone in bombing Iran. 'So you don't know if US, Australian and satellite communications and signals intelligence?'' Stefanovic asked. 'That's the same question, and I've answered it,'' Senator Wong said. What is Pine Gap? Pine Gap is a joint US-Australian intelligence facility located near Alice Springs, Australia that is primarily used for signals intelligence collection, including telemetry from weapons systems, signals from antimissile and anti-aircraft radars, communications satellite transmissions, and microwave emissions. It also monitors military developments, and supports US military operations, including drone strikes. Senator Wong was asked the same question on ABC TV and again declined to answer. 'We don't comment on intelligence matters. We certainly don't comment on the matters you are asking me about,'' she said. 'The US made clear publicly these were unilateral 'I think it is important to remember that the facilities that were struck only existed for the purpose of Iran's nuclear program. That's what we are talking about. The world has long agreed Iran is not in compliance with its international obligations when it comes to nuclear material and the world long agreed it's not in the interests of collective peace and security for Iran to gain access to a nuclear weapon.' Defence Minister blindsided Defence Minister Richard Marles appeared blindsided by the attacks on Sunday morning telling Sky News shortly before the US dropped the bombs that he wasn't going to speculate on whether Iran was close to building a nuclear bomb and urging de-escalation and diplomacy. Do you believe the US would be justified in using a bunker bomb on the Fordow underground site?,'' Sky News host Andrew Clennell asked. 'Well, look, I'm not about to speculate on what the United States does,'' he replied. 'I mean, the position that we have articulated in relation to this conflict has been consistent from the outset, and that is that we are worried about the prospect for escalation here, and we've been urging de-escalation, we've been urging dialogue and diplomacy.' As he spoke, the US bombs were about to be dropped in Iran. Asked if he believed Iran was close to having a nuclear weapon, Mr Marles refused to say. 'Again, I'm not about to speculate on that, other than to say what I already have, and that is that the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program is most definitely a threat to the peace and stability of not only the Middle East, but the world,'' he said. Call for 'clarity' Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison has backed President Trump's decision to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities as 'a last resort' urging Australia to now speak with clarity about why the US had to act. Describing the bombing as 'a necessary event', Mr Morrison stressed that the United States has launched a targeted mission that reflected the fact that it was the only ally of Israel with the military hardware to penetrate Iran's underground bunkers. 'There were no other options available to the President,'' Mr Morrison said. 'I think President Trump has been very clear about seeking to get an agreement with Iran. This was completely rejected, and made it very clear that there was no negotiation now there was the opportunity for complete capitulation and that was not offered, and they are the only military in the world that is capable of doing what it has just done, and that is what has happened.' But in a barbed observation on the conduct of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong And you're right that's going to be in less than 15 minutes from now. That address to the nation, I know I've interrupted your Sunday. I won't give you much longer. I just wanted to get one last thought, your last sort of consideration on how Australia should respond. I know you don't want to give advice to your successor unnecessarily. But do you have any views on how we should view this, this huge, quite significant development that we've seen this morning? Well, it's time for some clarity. I think there's been far too much ambiguity about this from Australia, far too much ambiguity. And it's time for clarity. And the clarity is we were dealing with a theocratic authoritarian state that sponsored an attack on a close friends in Israel back on the seventh of October, and they have shown their true colours. And Iran is not a friend of Australia. It's not a friend of Australia's interests. This is a this is a conflict not with the people of Iran who are wonderful people, creative.'
ABC News
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
ABC podcast Spies in the Outback takes top gong in New York
Friday 23 May 2025 ABC podcast Expanse Series 3: Spies in the Outback, hosted by Alice Springs journalist Alex Barwick, has won the top gong at the New York Festivals Radio Awards. Announced today at the gala ceremony, Spies in the Outback won gold and Expanse Series 4 Uncropped is a finalist in the documentary / history category. The prestigious Awards celebrate creative storytellers from across the globe and recognise exceptional quality in broadcast audio content. The Grand Jury chose the podcast series from a field of thousands of entries across six continents. The story starts in the Cold War era and examines the secretive US/Australian defence base Pine Gap, hidden in Barwick's back yard of Alice Springs. Barwick, who pitched the winning audio concept to the ABC, has been a reporter in the region for 17 years. She says she wanted to tell a story from regional Australia that would capture the imagination of a global audience. 'Working with an incredible team – Piia Wirsu, Grant Wolter and Elsa Silberstein, and led by our Executive Producer Blythe Moore, we were able to explore just how significant Pine Gap is in the Australia/US defence relationship,' Barwick says. 'It was important to tell the history of Pine Gap and how it's shaped my town with care, while also examining what role it may have played in past and present global conflicts.' EP Blythe Moore: 'The ABC's strength and its point of difference is that we have boots on the ground in some of the most remote and far-flung places in Australia. 'We couldn't have told this story for a global audience without Alex's extensive experience reporting for ABC Alice Springs, her incredible local contacts and connection to the community, and her doggedness to understand what is going on at Pine Gap. That's what took this investigation to a whole other level.' Media contact: Emma Brown | ABC Communications
