Television interview with Minister Butler, Sunrise – 20 June 2025

MONIQUE WRIGHT, HOST: Well, let's get more on the Middle East conflict now and the news that the Australian Government is evacuating its embassy out of Tehran. We're joined now by Health Minister Mark Butler and Shadow Finance Minister James Paterson. Morning to you both. Mark, we'll start with you. What does this mean for Australians who really want to get out of Iran?
 
MARK BUTLER, MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND AGEING, MINISTER FOR DISABILITY AND THE NDIS: Good morning, Mon. We think there are now more than 2,000 Australians who have registered for assistance to depart Iran, that's up from 1,500 only yesterday. This is clearly a really serious issue for them, but also for the Australian Government. As I think you said in an earlier report, we'll have our staff, our officials, redeploying to neighbouring Azerbaijan, working on the border to do everything that they can to assist Australians to depart. But it is a really difficult, hard situation. The airspace is still closed. We'll be exploring every opportunity we can to support people getting out in other ways, but we encourage people, continue to monitor Smartraveller and register with the local consulate so that we have your name, we have your contact details, and when the opportunity arises, we can help you get out.
 
WRIGHT: Yeah, Penny Wong has just said how difficult it has been to be able to help Australians on the ground. You have been able to help some Australians trying to flee Israel. However, they've criticised the government for only giving 55 minutes notice, so they had to pack their bags, say goodbye to everyone, be able to get through the traffic and so on. That timing's tough, isn't it? Was it for security reasons?
 
BUTLER: Look, it is tough to get these arrangements right. When the opportunity arises to get some people out, we take that opportunity. We've got really hard-working staff from Foreign Affairs and Trade in country in Israel doing everything they can to assist the more than 1,200 Aussies who have registered for assistance to depart Israel again. The airspace is closed in that country as well. Where there is an opportunity to get people out on border crossings into Jordan, we're taking it, but sometimes people have to take that opportunity quickly.
 
WRIGHT: Okay, is that likely to be repeated? Because we know there's many more Australians that want to get out. Should they be expecting for anyone who's speaking to their family in Israel at the moment, that it can be as short as that? Is this going to be practised moving forward?
 
BUTLER: At the end of the day, the officials work with the circumstances they've got in country. Sometimes these opportunities have to be taken when they arise. I encourage people to continue to monitor their emails very, very closely, because when an opportunity arises to get Australians out of Israel, we're going to take it.
 
WRIGHT: Yeah, okay, fair enough. James, the PM is considering his attendance at a NATO summit next week where he may reschedule his meeting with President Donald Trump. Should he go anyway, given what's unfolding in the Middle East? There's more than 30 other countries that are there, America's no longer the centre of the universe. Should he go anyway?
 
JAMES PATERSON, SENATOR: Yes, I'd be supportive of the Prime Minister going to NATO anyway. I think there's three good reasons why he should go, regardless of whether he meets with President Trump. The first is we have a strong interest in the outcome of Russia's war on Ukraine. We want Ukraine to win and we should be coordinating closely with our allies about the things we can do to support them. Secondly, we have a strong shared interest with our European partners on the outcome of what's happening in Iran right now. We want Iran's nuclear enrichment program to come to an end, as do they, and we should be coordinating on that. And thirdly, it would give the Prime Minister an opportunity to consult with European partners on the importance of increasing defence spending, and they can tell him what the consequences are of failing to invest adequately in defence industry in peacetime, and hopefully he can heed that advice. If he meets with President Trump on the sidelines, that would be a bonus. But, frankly, I think his approach of now waiting seven months to go and see the President and not going to see him in Washington DC, relying on a chance meeting on the sidelines of an international forum, is a very risky strategy, as we saw at the G7.
 
WRIGHT: Okay. Mark, very quickly, is the PM going to NATO?
 
BUTLER: I don't think he's made a decision yet. I think James has outlined the reasons that I'm sure will be working through the Prime Minister's mind. Whatever happens, we'll be represented at a very high level at NATO.
 
WRIGHT: Okay, Mark, James, thank you both.
 
PATERSON: Thank you.
 
BUTLER: Thank you.