Television Interview, Today Show

SUBJECT: Conflict in the Middle East

SARAH ABO, HOST: Well, top Iranian officials are this morning ruling out negotiations with the US as conflict in the Middle East escalates. To discuss, we are joined by Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles in Canberra. Good morning to you, Deputy PM. So, this war is expected to last beyond Trump's anticipated four to five weeks. He said that this morning. So, is Australia being asked to provide any military or otherwise support?

RICHARD MARLES, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: No, we're not. And look, I think it's hard to speculate exactly how long this will go. Obviously, we are monitoring this very closely, but we've not been asked to participate. This is an action which is being undertaken by the United States and by Israel. That said, obviously, we've made it clear we support this US‑led action because a core aim of it is to prevent Iran from ever acquiring a deployable nuclear weapon. Because, and, if they ever achieve that, that would be a catastrophe for the world.

ABO: Presumably the Australian government didn't really get a heads up that this action was being taken, and there are now accusations of international law violations. Was this attack by the US and Israel lawful?

MARLES: Well, I mean, what is unlawful is for Iran to be seeking to acquire a nuclear weapon capability. I mean, that flies in the face of the Non‑Proliferation Treaty and the international regime which is in place to limit the expansion of nuclear weapons. At the end of the day, this is a matter for the United States and Israel to justify the legal side of their actions. But there's absolutely no doubt that the world could not trust Iran in terms of what it was doing with its nuclear program. And it is utterly essential for global security that Iran be prevented from acquiring this capability.

ABO: So, from your position, it was justified?

MARLES: Well, we are supporting the US‑led action. I mean, the idea of Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon is absolutely appalling. And you know, you know, we have seen Iran seek to do that and the world has been warned of this for a very long time. And, so—

ABO: We’ve seen their actions throughout the Middle East, I mean, all their proxies obviously acting on all those terror actions that we've seen.

MARLES: But I guess, and here as well, I mean, we've seen Iran exercise those proxies in Australia. And so, you know, the way in which Iran has conducted itself globally has been outrageous.

ABO: Absolutely no one will condemn that. But I just want to ask as well to you, Deputy PM, because it doesn't seem clear what the objective is here. Following a really sort of peculiar media address this morning from the US President and Secretary of War, is this about regime change? Is this about targeting nuclear weapons? They seem to be sort of wishy‑washy about their actual objective here. How do you see it playing out? What is the objective from your perspective?

MARLES: Well, I mean, obviously it's a matter for America to articulate their position, but from Australia's point of view and why we support this action, it is very much about restricting Iran ever being able to acquire a deployable nuclear weapon.

ABO: So, it's not about regime change and giving the people of Iran the freedom that they've long sought for decades?

MARLES: Well, we very much stand with the people of Iran, let me be clear about that. And you know, what we've seen is an utterly oppressive autocracy which in just the last few weeks has killed thousands of its own citizens.

ABO: Has enough been done to help them in that regard?

MARLES: Well, I mean, we very much stand with the people of Iran as they seek to struggle against this regime.

ABO: Right, I mean, standing by them isn't going to help.

MARLES: Well, what plays out from here is something that all of us will be watching very closely. But there is absolutely no doubt that what we have here is an utterly repressive regime. I mean, Iran's behaviour globally is outrageous, as we've been describing, but Iran's behaviour at home, the regime's behaviour at home in respect of its own people, is an utter outrage. To see thousands of Iranians killed in just the last few weeks needs to be condemned in the strongest possible terms. And we've been doing that.

ABO: And I guess the concern is that it may continue with a new Supreme Leader about to be appointed within days. It's not even a choice that the Iranian people have been given. But let's just move on. The 150,000, 115,000 or so Aussies who are stuck in the Middle East—Deputy PM, many have complained of a 24‑hour wait to reach consular staff. So, what's behind that delay?

MARLES: Well, I mean, obviously there is a significant load on our consular hotline and on our consular services. You know, we've been aware that this is going to happen. As you said, there's 115,000 Australians in the region and to give you a sense, about 11,000 Australians on any given normal day go on a flight which transits through either Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Doha. And so there are a significant number of Australians there. We are obviously working through all of this as quickly as possible. We are posting advice on Smartraveller as soon as it comes to hand, and we are very much encouraging people to monitor that very closely. Like, in a practical sense, what enables change – what enables us to get people home or for people to be able to get home—is for airspace to be opened up. And that's really the critical issue here. There's been some reports of marginal airspace being opened up in a limited way, but really that's the issue that we're monitoring closely. We are going through some contingency arrangements right now, which I won't speak about publicly, looking forward over the coming days and weeks. But for most people, the most expeditious way in which they will be able to leave is going to be through commercial flights as soon as airspace reopens.

ABO: And just very quickly before we let you go, the PM has obviously condemned those who have mourned the Supreme Leader's death in some of those mosques. But in terms of the next steps, is there going to be any federal police action or any state authorities will shut down these mosques and investigate further?

MARLES: Well, look, I mean, I'm not about to suggest what the police should do. That's a matter for them. But let me say this. Our thoughts are not with the Supreme Leader. Our thoughts are with the thousands of Iranians who have died at the hands of the Supreme Leader just in the last few weeks, without looking at the countless numbers of Iranians who have lost their lives over the nearly 40 years that the Supreme Leader has been at the helm of the Iranian state. This is an oppressive autocracy which has oppressed its own people. And we stand with the Iranian people. And that's where people's thoughts should rightly be focused today.

ABO: Anyone who can celebrate his life is beyond me. Alright, Deputy PM, thanks for joining us this morning.