Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for her question and very much acknowledge her leadership in this government. The war in the Middle East is now entering its 32nd day. The commencement of this conflict occurred across a region which is home to some of the largest Australian expat communities in the world. Indeed, 115,000 Australians live across the Middle East. From almost the moment that hostilities started, the skies above Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha were closed. Immediately prior to the conflict, on any given day, about 11,000 Australians transited these airports, which meant that, when hostilities started, there were thousands of Australians who were stranded. Over the last 4½ weeks, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has dispatched crisis response teams to the region, and they have facilitated the return of more than 10,000 Australians back home. For the Australians who continue to live in the region, we continue to provide our travel advisories. There is a 'no travel' advice in place for 11 countries in the region.

Immediately prior to this conflict starting, there were more than 100 Defence Force personnel engaged in seven missions across the region, most of whom were at our operational headquarters at Al Minhad Air Base near Dubai. On 10 March we responded to a request from the UAE to supply an E-7 Wedgetail to help in the support of the UAE, and, later that week, that plane and its 85 support crew were in the region, and since then it has conducted multiple missions which have helped in the security of the UAE. We have also supplied a number of advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles to the UAE.

Now, obviously, the war has had a significant impact on the global oil price, which has been felt through increased fuel prices here in Australia and around the world, and, with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the global fuel supply chain has also been disrupted.

At the outset of this conflict, there was a very clear strategic objective to deny Iran ever having the acquisition of a deployable nuclear weapon, and we support this. I'd remind everyone that, just this year, Iran has killed thousands of its own citizens. It has been the sponsor of terrorism around the world, including here in Australia. That said, this conflict is now in its fifth week. It's been going a long time. It has been a major disruption on the global economy. And, while we continue to support the strategic objective, which is clearly important, in every respect we seek to support the reduction of hostilities— (Time expired)

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