John Faulkner (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Cabinet Secretary) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I will briefly outline the reasons for the government voting against Senator Nettle’s motion. The government could not support the motion, which has just been voted against, given the form that it was in. I would like to place on the record, as I have so many times before, our objection to dealing with complex international relations matters such as this one by the use of formal motions. I will not bore the Senate by repeating the comments that I have made on so many occasions about such motions being blunt instruments, but I do commend the Senate to consider, after the change in the Senate’s composition on 1 July, looking again at the fact that we are all forced into black-and-white choices on these motions to support or oppose. They do not lend themselves to the nuances which are so critically necessary to many areas of policy, none more important than in relation to foreign affairs policy. Furthermore, as I have said on many occasions, I think they are far too easily misinterpreted by some audiences as statements of policy by a national government.

In relation to the specific issue that was the subject of the motion, I can say that of course Australia supports diplomatic efforts to resolve the issue of Iran’s uranium enrichment activities. Australia implements, in full, all decisions of the United Nations Security Council in resolutions which impose sanctions on Iran’s nuclear program. These resolutions prohibit the provision to Iran of goods and technology which could contribute to Iran’s uranium enrichment, heavy water related and reprocessing activities, or the development of nuclear weapon delivery systems, as well as of any assistance related to these goods.

Australia supports further measures by the international community that would bring greater pressure to bear on Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program and other proliferation sensitive nuclear activities prohibited by the UNSC. We welcome news that the European Union agreed on 23 June to new financial sanctions aimed at pressuring Iran to halt uranium enrichment. The government is considering what additional measures Australia, together with the international community, could take.

The International Atomic Energy Agency report of 26 May confirms that Iran is continuing with its uranium enrichment activities in violation of binding UNSC resolutions. According to the report, Iran has again refused to answer questions about possible nuclear weapon related activity and the involvement of military related entities in its nuclear program. Without answers the IAEA concluded it could not verify the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program. We would say that Iran should act now to remove all doubt about its intentions by immediately suspending its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities, as required by successive UN Security Council resolutions, by cooperating fully with the IAEA on all outstanding matters, especially those pertaining to possible weapons research, and by implementing the IAEA’s additional protocol and providing early information on new nuclear facilities, without which the IAEA cannot provide credible assurances about the nature of Iran’s nuclear program. I commend the government’s approach on this matter.