Television interview - Sky Newsday

KIERAN GILBERT, HOST: Prime Minister Albanese, thanks for your time, I know you've been meeting with the National Security Committee again. It's a week into this conflict. Reports that some Australian submariners were on board a US sub that sank an Iranian ship. Can you confirm that for us?

ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Well we wouldn't normally confirm such an issue, but given our NSC meetings and the public interest, I can confirm that there were three Australian personnel on board that vessel. I can confirm also, though, that no Australian personnel have participated in any offensive action against Iran. These are long-standing third country arrangements that have been in place for a long period of time, and what they do is ensure that Australian Defence Force personnel, where they're embedded in third countries' defence assets, they act in accordance with Australian law, with Australian policy, and that, of course, is taking place across the board.

GILBERT: And in this context, with the three submariners - is that, to give context for our viewers, is that part of the AUKUS training regime, that we have submariners involved with the US, so that when we get our Virginia-class subs, they're ready to go?

PRIME MINISTER: That's right. One of the big pluses behind the AUKUS arrangements are Australian personnel getting experience across a range of assets, including being on board nuclear powered submarines, but also the exchange occurring across the board. So it's not just personnel, it's engineers, it's technicians, it's people learning those skills, whether they be in the United States or the United Kingdom.

GILBERT: When you look at the way that this operation has unfolded, are you comfortable with where things are at, both in terms of international law and the way, for example, that ship was sunk by the US? Do you feel vindicated right now for your early support of the strikes?

PRIME MINISTER: That's a matter of course for the United States in terms of those legal issues. What I'm certainly comfortable with is that Australia took a view that Iran has been threatening on three levels. One, threatening its own people with their actions that they've taken where tens of thousands of people have been killed for trying to exercise their human rights. Secondly, that Iran could not be allowed to be in a position of acquiring nuclear weapons, that that would represent an enormous threat to stability in the world. And thirdly, as well, that Iran had engaged for decades now, over 37 years that the regime has been in place, in promoting terrorism around the world, in the region through its support for proxies such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis. But also, of course, they brought terrorism to our shores here when the IRGC was responsible for at least two attacks on Australian soil. Now, we took strong action at the time to expel the ambassador - the first time that Australia has expelled an ambassador since the Second World War. We closed our embassy in Tehran. And I think Iran's actions as well in the indiscriminate action it has taken out against at least 12 nations, not nations that are participating in attacks on Iran, countries like the United Arab Emirates, for example, where so many Australians were, some 21,000 Australians are there. They're friends of Australia. They haven't been participants in this, but the seemingly random attacks from everywhere from Cypress, to all of the Gulf states, Azerbaijan, the missile fired towards Türkiye and towards a NATO state. These are all issues that really should reinforce the nature of this regime.

GILBERT: Are you surprised then that your friend Keir Starmer equivocated? Other world leaders have equivocated, you went in and backed the US strongly. Are you surprised by that reaction?

PRIME MINISTER: My job is to assess Australia's position, and I think that the attack on Australian soil made our position quite clear. It really brought home to Australians that the nature of this regime wasn't just engaging in proxy terrorism - through Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis - but was prepared to reach across the other side of the world to promote an attack on Australian soil to promote division here in Australia.

GILBERT: And I know you didn't support the fact that, you criticised the mourning of the tyrant, and many of your ministers have said similar things. Would you and have you asked the security agencies look into those mosques, those leaders, those venerating the tyrant?

PRIME MINISTER: What I'm about here is promoting social unity here. I'm not looking for division. The Australian Government position has been very clear, and it's an unequivocal one.

GILBERT: When you look at that sort of reaction though, it wouldn't go down well with Iranian expats, with many Australians who would look at that behaviour, when you when you look at it, does it inform your thinking when it comes to migration debate, for example, if those values are not Australian values not Australian values that you hear out of a mosque or community centre like that?

PRIME MINISTER: What I'm interested in is promoting social cohesion. I'm also at the same time promoting a consistent and clear and unequivocal Australian foreign policy.

GILBERT: Will our agencies be monitoring those groups?

PRIME MINSTER: Look, we -

GILBERT: Espousing, sort of, support for the dead Ayatollah?

PRIME MINISTER: What our agencies do is do their work. We allow them to do their work, and without ongoing running commentary on that work that they undertake. But I am confident that they do to the best of their capacity. They do extraordinary work, and they deserve our support, and one of the ways that we give them support is not by running a commentary on a regular basis. We allow them to get about.

GILBERT: On the broader issue of the legality, you hear from the Greens and others criticising you for supporting it, that it's illegal. Do people need to factor in those things that you looked at earlier? There were four decades of proxy or terrorism support, the fact that this was a regime that brutalised its own people. That they committed offences right around the world. When we look at whether it's legal under international law, those grey zone tactics and warfare, do you have to factor that in?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, the legal questions are, of course, questions for the states that launched the attack, the United States and Israel. What our task is to be really clear about what Australia's interests are and what the interests of the world are in promoting global peace, security and prosperity.

GILBERT: It's going to have a massive impact economically on us too, isn't it?

PRIME MINISTER: Look, there is no question that when you have a global event like this, it will have an economic impact. We're not immune from that, but we come to it from a position of strength. We have the largest fuel reserves in Australia that we've had for 15 years. We've had the national accounts this week that showed the economy growing the fastest it has in three years. We have an unemployment rate that is at 4.1 per cent. Now, we're not immune, though, from the effects just as the -

GILBERT: What are you worried about in terms of the effects, most?

PRIME MINISTER: Of course, the inflationary impact of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine had an impact here. This could have an impact here as well. That is factored in by how long this lasts for, the way that this plays out will, of course, have an impact on supply chains as well. So we're monitoring that on a regular basis. So our priorities are firstly, to keep Australians safe. How do we get Australians home safely? How do we provide some protection for them? People who are in the region, in the Gulf States.

GILBERT: And where is that, by the way? What's your latest advice on the Australians there?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we are hopeful that more flights continue, of course, to land from the Middle East. We think that is the quickest way for them to come home. But we've also put in place some contingencies as well.

GILBERT: And the contingencies, the military assets that have gone there. Are you comfortable that that airspace now is safe to get people out from your advice?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, look, this is a changing situation - hour by hour. We've seen attacks at the airport at Dubai, we've seen issues in Doha, we see issues right across the region. So we are continuing to monitor the situation. When it's safe to do so, the commercial flights have been able to be undertaken.

GILBERT: You've got to get going, but I want to ask you a few other questions to wrap up. The world leader visiting amid the conflict, Mark Carney being here. He's making his point about rupturing world order, middle powers working together. Is that the only way forward? Do you see that as the way that Australia really needs to shore up its economy and its security by working with the likes of Canada, Japan, Korea and others?

PRIME MINISTER: It's what we've been doing since 2022 since I became prime minister. Developing those really important relations, not forgetting our historic alliance with the United States, of course, is critical. Our relationship with the UK. But how do we reach out, particularly, in our region? Now, Canada is a particularly important partner. They're part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, they're an APEC nation. They're a nation as well where our economies are complementary. We're both great resource nations. We can cooperate in areas such as critical minerals. We will be two superpowers, as Prime Minister Carney said, in the production of critical minerals. We've got a strategic reserve, they've got a similar structure in place. How do we make sure that we work together in our common interest?

GILBERT: Do you think that we can? Because there's been talk about working closely with Canada, more closely for a long time. But how do we take the words into action?

PRIME MINISTER: The relationship has never been stronger. The relationship that we had, my invitation to the G7, Prime Minister Carney coming here, even at what is a turbulent global time, as an indication of the priority that Canada places on this relationship. It wasn't just Prime Minister Carney, it was the Finance Minister, the Defence Minister, all here having discussions with our counterparts as well. We've put in place annual meetings, structures in place as well, and I'll visit Canada sometime later in this term. It's consistent as well with what we've done in ASEAN, the relationship we're building with Indonesia, with India, with our Pacific neighbours, as well as of course, our traditional partners in North Asia, of Korea and Japan. But also the improvements and moves to stabilise the relationship with China is also very important in our region. So we have an all-hands-on-deck approach. The European Union, we're busy trying to finalise the agreement -

GILBERT: For free trade?

PRIME MINISTER: The Free Trade Agreement. That would be substantial.

GILBERT: Will that happen soon?

PRIME MINISTER: Well, we're very close.

GILBERT: Sounds like it's, what? Within days?

PRIME MINISTER: We're very close to an agreement, and that would be very significant indeed of opening up those markets, but also strengthening free and fair trade at a time where that very concept is under challenge.

GILBERT: You've been generous with your time, it would be remiss of me if I didn't ask you about the first week of Angus Taylor's leadership within the parliament. The Liberal Party feel like they've steadied the ship, and they're cohesive now, and they're going to put forward a good fight now. Do you recognise that this could get a bit more challenging for the government over coming months?

PRIME MINISTER: We certainly are never complacent, but I thought they had a shocker of the week. I thought instead of a Shadow Treasurer, that should be taken seriously at a time of economic turbulence around the world, they went two days without asking a single question about economy or about cost of living. When they did first start talking about it the Shadow Treasurer chose to sing. It was almost like he's a parody. You don't need the Betoota Advocate when you've got a guy as Shadow Treasurer who thinks it's appropriate to sing a parody song just before Question Time. And they didn't ask about the war in the Middle East that's going on that's having such a major impact at all. So some of them are quite pleased with themselves - there's been people moved down the front, down the back. And I think that they've got a way to go if they're going to be taken seriously as an alternative government.

GILBERT: Prime Minister Albanese, thanks for your time.

PRIME MINISTER: Thanks very much.