Portfolio — 31 March 2026

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Mr Marles, reported to the House on day 32 of the Middle East conflict, delivering one of the most operationally detailed accounts of Australia's response to date. With 115,000 Australians resident across the region and approximately 11,000 transiting the major hub airports — Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Doha — on any given day before their closure at the outset of hostilities, the consular and defence exposure is substantial [TA-260331-house-66782c600be9:s143].

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has deployed crisis response teams and facilitated the return of more than 10,000 Australians over the preceding four and a half weeks, with 'no travel' advisories now in place across 11 countries in the region.

On the defence side, Australia had more than 100 personnel engaged across seven missions in the region before the conflict began. The government responded to a UAE request by deploying an E-7 Wedgetail and 85 support crew on 10 March — now more than three weeks into its operational tempo — conducting multiple missions since arrival [TA-260331-house-66782c600be9:s143].

Australia has also supplied advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles to the UAE, a direct materiel contribution to a partner under pressure.

The Deputy Prime Minister was direct about the conflict's broader strategic weight. The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted global fuel supply chains, with flow-on consequences for global oil prices that Australia cannot insulate itself from [TA-260331-house-66782c600be9:s143]. Against that backdrop, Mr Marles reaffirmed the government's support for the core strategic objective: denying Iran acquisition of a deployable nuclear weapon.

The government's stated position holds both elements together — seeking reduction of hostilities while not retreating from that strategic objective — as the conflict moves into its fifth week.