Sydney : Australia has come under fire after it emerged that three of its defence personnel were on board the US submarine that torpedoed and sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean last week. The incident not only widened the theatre of war outside the Middle East but also brought it to India’s backyard. The Iranian warship was returning after participating in multinational exercises organised by the Indian Navy when it was sunk by American attack submarine USS Charlotte near the Sri Lankan coast on March 4.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese admitted that three defence force personnel were on the US submarine as part of an Aukus training program. Aukus is a security pact between the US, the UK and Australia aimed at countering China’s growing presence in the Indo-Pacific region. While Albanese asserted that the Australian personnel did not participate in any offensive action against Iran, he threw little light on what transpired on March 4 inside the submarine.
A source in the Australian military told The Nightly that the three defence personnel were kept away from the US action against the Iranian warship. The source said the navy personnel were ordered to head to their rooms before the US undertook the operation. The issue has become a hot-button topic back home. The left-wing Green Party has accused Albanese of lying about the government’s involvement in the war against Iran.
This makes Australia obviously, clearly, unambiguously, part of an illegal war, part of a war that is breaking down the norms of international law and making the world a less safe place, said Greens senator David Shoebridge. While IRIS Dena was sunk, two other Iranian ships were given safe harbour by India and Sri Lanka at the same time. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said the warship, which was attending an international exercise, was not carrying weapons.
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