October 7, 2024
Australia's ambassador to Iran has been summoned by Tehran over what it says is a "biased stance", after Iran's ambassador in Canberra was "called in" again.
Iran's foreign ministry summoned Ian McConville on Sunday, citing concerns about Australia's stance on Iran's response to what it called "the Zionist regime," meaning Israel.
The incident is the latest in a diplomatic tug-of-war between the two nations, as debate rages in Australia over whether the Albanese government should take stronger action against Iran's ambassador to Australia, Ahmad Sadeghi.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been criticised for not expelling Mr Sadeghi over his social media posts, the latest praising the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
"We condemn the ambassador's comments," Mr Albanese said on Friday.
Mr Sadeghi's post to X called Nasrallah - who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon last month - a "blessed martyr" and "remarkable leader".
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade called the Iranian ambassador in on Friday, in a repeat of its response to Mr Sadeghi's earlier post in August which called for a "wiping out" of Israelis in Palestine by 2027, while also referring to Israelis as a "Zionist plague".
A DFAT spokesperson said in a statement that Australia "makes no apology for the views it has expressed about Iran's actions or the actions of its Ambassador to Australia".
"The Australian Government condemned Iran's reckless missile strikes on Israel. They were a dangerous escalation and increased the risks of a wider regional war," the spokesperson said.
"The Australian Government continues to call on all parties to exercise restraint and de-escalate.
"The destructive cycle of violence in the region must stop."
Defence Minister Richard Marles said on Sunday that "tweeting in support of Hezbollah, a registered terrorist organisation, is utterly unacceptable".
"The Iranian ambassador was called in on Friday. This position was made very clear to him, as it was to the Iranian government, by our representatives in Tehran."
Mr McConville was previously summoned by Tehran last month over a social media post celebrating Wear it Purple Day - which supports LGBTIQA+ youth - which the Iranian government deemed "norm-breaking" for "promoting homosexuality".
Mr McConville was appointed as Australia's ambassador to Iran in April.
Announcing the appointment at the time, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said: "Australia has maintained an uninterrupted diplomatic presence in Iran since our Embassy opened in Tehran in 1968."
Mr Marles said when asked if the relationship was a "diplomatic back channel" for the United States, which has no embassy in Iran, that "this is about Australia's nation interest".
"The tweets of the Iranian ambassador are utterly unacceptable," he told ABC Insiders.
The Defence Minister said Australia maintained diplomatic relations with "a whole lot of countries with whom we have great differences" to pursue the national interest.
"That doesn't equal any acceptance of what Iran is saying," he said.
"Indeed, we have been condemning Iran for a whole lot of its behaviours for a very long period of time.
"We condemn Iran for its attacks on Israel in the last few days. And we certainly condemn the Iranian ambassador for the tweets that he put out."
Opposition Home Affairs spokesman James Paterson told Sky on Sunday that it was "naive" to think the Iranian ambassador would change his behaviour.
"This is not his first offence. It's not even the first time he's been called in for a cup of tea at DFAT," Senator Paterson said.
"The only way we'll get the ambassador to respect Australians and our law is for the Iranian regime to fear the consequences.
"Frankly, I think this is another example of weak leadership from the Prime Minister, and he's going to allow the Iranian ambassador to continue to flout the law and Australian customs because he has no stomach for the tough decisions required."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday that his government "condemns any support for terrorist organisations such as Hezbollah".
The Iranian embassy has not responded to requests for comment.
