Australia rules out military role in Iran conflict
The Straits Times
Australia confirms it will not participate in military operations in Iran, focusing instead on assisting stranded Australians in the Middle East. Read more at straitstimes.com.
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SYDNEY - Australia said on March 2 that it would not take part in any military operations in Iran, ruling out deploying troops to the Middle East if the conflict escalates, as Israel launched fresh strikes on Tehran and Iran responded with more missile attacks.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an attack on Feb 28, while the United States reported its first casualties in the war as US President Donald Trump hinted the conflict could last for four more weeks.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Canberra would not get involved.
“Australia is not central to the issues in the Middle East. We didn’t participate in these strikes and we wouldn’t anticipate participating in the future,” she told Channel Nine on March 2.
Ms Wong said the Australian government was in discussions with airlines to help Australians stranded in the Middle East but acknowledged that evacuation plans would be difficult while airspace across much of the region remained closed.
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