Australia Must Not Join Trump In War With Iran

The US has unilaterally launched airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, pushing the world to the edge of another catastrophic Middle Eastern war. Israel is already in open conflict with Iran. Now, by bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites - despite clear intelligence that Iran has not resumed a weapons program - Donald Trump has chosen ideology over evidence, and escalation over diplomacy.

Australia must not follow him.

We’ve Been Here Before - And We Learned the Hard Way

The Iraq War taught Australia a bitter lesson: don’t outsource foreign policy to a superpower with a domestic political agenda. That war was waged on a lie - that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. The consequences were hundreds of thousands of deaths, the rise of ISIS, and a generation of destabilisation across the region. We must not repeat that mistake.

Iran is a proud and ancient nation. But it’s also a volatile one, with regional alliances and proxy forces that can be ruthless. And it has a huge armoury of ballistic missles and drones. If the conflict escalates - and it almost certainly will - there is no clean exit. Any Australian military involvement would make us complicit in what could quickly become a region-wide war. Iran is likely to use its missiles to target the 50,000 US troops based in the Middle East - in countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE etc. And this time, it’s not just about oil or ideology - it’s about nuclear facilities, global security, and the lives of thousands of people.

Trump Is Ignoring His Own Intelligence

What makes this even more dangerous and immoral is Trump’s wilful disregard of fact. The US’s own intelligence agencies concluded Iran was not actively pursuing nuclear weapons. The Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, confirmed it under oath. But Trump said: “Well I don’t believe them.”

Let that sink in. A president ignoring professional intelligence to justify an act of war. And now Gabbard, formerly a voice of relative restraint in the Trump Regime, has reversed her stance - apparently not to contradict her commander-in-chief. This isn’t foreign policy. It’s authoritarian theatre. And it’s dragging the world towards chaos.

Australia Must Say No

Australia’s alliance with the United States has been important - but the US is increasingly becoming an unreliable ally and a rogue state. We are not a vassal state. We are an independent nation, with our own values, interests, and responsibilities under international law. That includes the responsibility not to participate in pre-emptive strikes that violate the UN Charter.

We cannot afford another morally bankrupt war. Not when the world is already grappling with climate collapse, economic inequality, and ongoing crises in Gaza, Myanmar, etc. Not when our own region - Asia and the Pacific - is crying out for leadership focused on peace, climate resilience, and development, not missiles.

Australia Has Better Things to Fight For

Instead of joining yet another US-led war, Australia should be fighting for something else: human rights and democracy. Climate justice. Regional peace. A rules-based international order that holds all countries accountable, not just those that Donald Trump conveniently labels as enemies.

War with Iran would be a political failure and moral stain. We must stand firm, say no to the US, and use our diplomatic voice - loudly - to call for de-escalation.

Call to Action👇🏽

Let the Prime Minister and Defence Minister know this is not Australia’s war. Call Anthony Albanese on (02) 9564 3588 and Richard Marles on (03) 52213033. Tell them we must not be bullied, pressured, or seduced into making it one.