Australian Defence Minister Pat Conroy applauded the idea, but said no formal request has been made for Australia to send troops to a multinational peacekeeping force in Gaza. Humanitarian ceasefire still ongoing diplomatic talks. The United States is preparing to send as many as 200 US troops to Israel. There are no American forces expected to take an active role in Gaza. Indeed, the situation is still quite fluid, with active negotiations still underway as to which countries will join the proposed international security force (ISF).
Speaking at a press conference convened in Parliament House, Conroy declared that military-to-military discussions between countries are usual. He mentioned that our military engages in direct planning and discussions with other militaries when contingency planning is a regular practice. This is not unusual behavior. He made those comments following an online meeting with Vice Admiral Justin Jones, the Chief of Joint Operations for the Australian Defence Force (ADF). They briefed military strategies in the Middle East as well as directly to USCENTCOM (U.S.
Ongoing Negotiations for Troop Contributions
According to US media reports, Arab and Muslim countries are beginning to emerge as important partners in the ISF. Yet, their role is only growing in importance. The issue in negotiations, then, isn’t about which countries, exactly. These consultations have the potential to set the course for Australia’s re-engagement with international peacekeeping operations in the future. Conroy turned the spotlight back on Australia’s lack of formal request for assistance so far.
Conroy continued, “This is a hard-fought-win — If we get a proposal, we will consider it, but then the government will decide.” His remarks emphasize Australia’s resolve to remain agile. The country’s willingness to answer international calls for assistance in times of crisis.
ADF’s Role and Future Considerations
To help frame this idea, Vice Admiral Justin Jones helped us understand what he envisioned Australia’s role would be under this new international paradigm. As he explained it, if Australia were asked to help, it would probably be in a “coordination and security” role. I get what they’re going for and how it can be made to look, he said. He delivered that wisdom without trampling the federal decision-making process, as he often did.
Jones reiterated that it should be the government of Australia that decides how deeply we want to commit to operations in Gaza. “It’s not for me to get ahead of the Australian government though … it’s for government to determine how they wish to commit to any operations in Gaza,” he said.
Potential Future Involvement in Ukraine
Conroy expressed the importance of continuing conversations around Gaza. He further declared that Australia would be open to future peacekeeping contributions to Ukraine, but only with a ceasefire in place. This announcement emphasizes Australia’s dedication to placing soldiers into UN peacekeeping missions when able and possible.
The Australian government continues to closely watch the geopolitical landscape as the situation continues to rapidly develop. They’ll be ready to answer the call quickly for civil-military engagements or requests for military support to U.N. peacekeeping operations globally.
