Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran on Wednesday but said US President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy Iran’s civilian infrastructure had not been “appropriate”.
Trump had warned that “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again” if Iran failed to meet his deadline for a deal.
Asked about the comments on Sky News Australia, Albanese said: “I don’t think it’s appropriate to use language such as that from the president of the United States, and I think it will cause some concern.”
But he welcomed news that the United States and Iran had agreed to a ceasefire, barely an hour before Trump’s deadline expired.
“What we have called for is a de-escalation, and that is what has occurred, and that’s a good thing,” the Australian leader said.
“This is positive news. We’ve been calling for a de-escalation for some time. We want to see a resolution of the conflict.”
Tehran said it would temporarily reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz and cast the ceasefire as a victory after more than a month of attacks by the United States and Israel.
Iran has effectively closed the strait since US-Israeli strikes on February 28 sparked a larger regional conflict, causing global oil and gas prices to soar.
Speaking to national broadcaster ABC, Australia’s top diplomat Penny Wong also condemned Trump’s remarks.
“I don’t think anyone should be threatening the destruction of a civilisation,” she said.
Australia, reliant on imported fuel and holding roughly 39 days’ supply of petrol, has been hit hard by the global impact of the war.
“The damage that is happening to the global economy, to global energy markets, means that the world does need this ceasefire to hold,” Wong said.
She also rejected the Israeli government’s claims the ceasefire did not apply to Lebanon, where Israel’s attacks in recent weeks have killed more than 1,500 people and displaced over a million, according to Lebanese authorities.
“The world expects the ceasefire to apply to the region,” Wong said.
Having initially backed US-Israeli strikes on Iran, Albanese said last week the original aims of the war had been met and it was not clear what more remained to be achieved.
Canberra has sought to soften the impact of soaring prices by cutting petrol taxes.
