Australia welcomes Israel-Iran ceasefire

The Australian government has welcomed a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, announced by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday and condemned Iran’s strikes on American military bases.

In a statement issued following the announcement, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, “Australia welcomes President Trump’s announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. We have consistently called for dialogue, diplomacy and de-escalation.”

Opposition Leader Sussan Ley and Acting Shadow Foreign Minister Andrew Hastie also welcomed the development. “Any step that de-escalates tensions and prevents a wider regional conflict is a moment to be recognised. A ceasefire is a vital step to prevent further suffering and to give space for diplomacy and stability to return,” they said in a joint statement.

The ceasefire was declared hours after Iran launched missile strikes on US military bases in Qatar and Iraq. The attacks were widely viewed as retaliation for targeted US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities on Sunday.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong condemned the Iranian strikes, stating on X: “Australia condemns Iran’s strike on US bases in Qatar and Iraq. We do not want to see further escalation. A full-scale war in the Middle East would be devastating for the people of the region and the world. Australia continues to call for de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy.”

Australia also expressed belated support for Sunday’s US military actions against Iran’s nuclear program. Speaking on Monday, Albanese said, “The world has long agreed that Iran cannot be allowed to get a nuclear weapon and we support action to prevent that.”

While Wong told Channel Nine, “We support action to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon and that is what this is.”

However, the government’s initial response following the US strikes was more cautious. A government spokesperson stated on Sunday, “We have been clear that Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program is a threat to international peace and security. We note the US President’s statement that now is the time for peace. The security situation in the region is highly volatile. We continue to call for de-escalation, dialogue and diplomacy.”

The Opposition criticised the initial statement as too “ambiguous”. In contrast, the Coalition released its own statement backing the US operation, declaring support for “actions taken by the United States of America to ensure that the Iranian regime is stopped from acquiring nuclear weapons”.

Liberal Senator and former Australian ambassador to Israel, Dave Sharma, also criticised the government’s response. Speaking on Sky News, Sharma said, “We had [Defence Minister] Richard Marles on television yesterday calling for de-escalation at the very same time, almost, that US B-2 bombers were flying from Missouri and striking targets in Iran. No one listens to our views seriously anymore on these issues, particularly in the Middle East.”

Sharma reiterated this concern at the Jewish Communal Appeal (JCA) event in Sydney on Sunday, saying, “It shows Australia isn’t being brought into the loop when it comes to Five Eyes intelligence sharing and it shows that Australia is out of the loop, because [Marles] wouldn’t have had that message if he had any inkling that Trump was preparing to do this.”