Following his meeting with US Vice President Cheney, can he assure the House that if there was a US-led attack on Iran during the Bush Administration’s term in office that Australia would neither support, nor participate in, any such attack.

The government is deeply concerned by Iran’s recent failure to meet previous United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and International Atomic Energy Agency obligations. This includes Iran’s non-compliance with the terms of UNSC Resolution 1696, as well as those of UNSC Resolution 1737 which was unanimously adopted on 23 December 2006. The Australian Government also continues to urge Iran to resume dialogue with European Union members, the United States and the United Nations (UN) on proposals to ensure Iran’s suspension of its sensitive nuclear activities. Disappointingly, Iran has not yet responded to these proposals.

The government will continue to work with its international partners to encourage Iran to meet its obligations and take the necessary steps to restore international confidence in its nuclear programme. The government remains committed to diplomatic efforts to resolve issues relating to Iran’s nuclear programme and believes that UN processes should be given every opportunity. It is not appropriate to comment further on hypothetical future events.