Keith Wolahan (Menzies, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Close enough! I tried some Persian today, and now I've tried that.

Can I say this: Australia must remain a strong supporter of a two-state solution in which Israel and a future Palestinian state can coexist. We on this side support Australia continuing to call for all parties to the conflict between the Palestinians and Israel to maintain restraint and to renounce violence. Violence never achieves anything. Labor has made a mistake here. It does need to act more professionally on major foreign policy decisions.

I watched when the criticism came thick and fast about our relationship with France, in relation to AUKUS. That was unfair. With a decision as tightly held as that, of course there was no other way to do it than the way that it occurred. But there was no allowance for that in most of the commentary that I saw from the other side. If you are sitting over here one day and we're there, if we are doing a good job on defence and foreign affairs, feel free to say so. You're welcome to do it. As long as I am in this place, I won't criticise you for putting the national interest first, because that's why I am here.

But this decision has not come without a cost. It's not a domestic political cost that we're seeking to get an advantage from; it's a cost to the nation. Let's look at the response from the Israeli Prime Minister:

In light of the way this decision was made … as a hasty response to an incorrect report in the media, we can only hope that the Australian government manages other matters more seriously and professionally

Then Australia's Ambassador to Israel was summoned by the Israeli foreign minister, who registered his deep disappointment in the face of the Australian government's decision resulting from short-sighted political considerations. We could have handled the announcement better, but so could you.

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