In brief
- Australia says it has never received a request to help in the Middle East from the US.
- Donald Trump says the UK didn't want to assist, and Australia "was not great".
Australia's government insists it still has not received any direct requests from the United States for military aid in its war with Iran, after a public attack from US President Donald Trump.
Trump criticised allied countries for not providing assistance in the conflict, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz continues to put pressure on global oil prices.
"[UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer] didn't want to help us. Australia, too. Australia was not great. I was a little surprised by Australia," Trump said.
Australia is providing military assistance in the Persian Gulf region following a request from the United Arab Emirates.
Defence Minister Richard Marles would not be drawn on the president's criticism, but said no requests from the White House have been received.
"The last thing I'm going to do is give a running commentary on what the president has said, all we can do is respond to this situation, respond to the requests that are made of us," he told ABC TV on Friday.
"We're looking at all the requests that we get from countries around the world, including the United States, and obviously we answer them in the context of our national interest.
"Defending the states of the Gulf is really important given our relationship with them."
An E-7A Wedgetail military surveillance plane, along with 85 defence personnel, was sent to the UAE to monitor Iranian drone strikes.
The request for help from the UAE has been the only one received by Australia since the US-Israel war with Iran began, Marles said.
"The E-7 is in the region, and it is playing a really important part," he said.
"It is playing an important role in respect of the defence of the Gulf states. We will work this through with our with our friends and our partners, to look at what role we can play.
The US president has extended a self-imposed deadline to Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to 6 April before potential strikes on energy infrastructure.
Federal minister Murray Watt said it was imperative for the war to be resolved as soon as possible.
"From Australia's perspective, we support anything that is going to get the Strait of Hormuz open as quickly as possible and restore some of the interrupted fuel chains that we have," Watt told ABC radio on Friday.
"The longer this dispute goes on and the longer the Strait of Hormuz is closed, that's going to continue to have impacts on the Australian economy and Australian families."
Coalition frontbencher Sarah Henderson said the government needed to outline why military help had not been provided to the US.
"It's quite embarrassing that in the international stage we have been called out as not providing appropriate assistance to the US," she told Sky News.
"The US is our strongest defence ally. This is pretty grim news overnight from the United States."
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
