The federal government won’t follow Germany and introduce new export restrictions to pressure Israel, with the defence minister, Richard Marles, insisting no weapons are being sent from Australia to aid the killing in Gaza.
Marles, the acting prime minister, said on Sunday that Australia was not exporting any weapons for use by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), a claim rejected by human rights campaigners and the Greens.
“Let’s be clear: we don’t supply weapons to Israel,” Marles told ABC TV.
“We’ve seen a lot of misinformation in relation to what Australia is doing here. The fundamental point is that we are not supplying weapons to Israel, and there is no step that we could take, equivalent to that of Germany, which would have any impact in relation to that.”
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The comments follow Germany’s decision last week to halt exports of military equipment that could be used in Gaza. The chancellor, Friedrich Merz, announced the decision on Friday, in response to Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to dramatically expand Israel’s Gaza operations, a move condemned by the international community.
Marles was asked about Australia exporting armoured steel and, separately, parts for F-35 fighter jets, which Israel previously conceded were used in operations in Gaza.
“We’re an F-35 country and we have been that for a couple of decades,” he said.
“That is a multi-lateral arrangement with supply chains that are organised by Lockheed Martin in the United States and have multiple suppliers in respect of all of those supply chains.”
David Shoebridge, the Greens’ spokesperson on foreign affairs, labelled Labor’s statements meaningless.
“Australia is a key part of the F-35 fighter jet program. We are the only place in the world that makes parts like the bomb bay doors [mechanism] and we operate as one of the few regional distribution hubs.
“Two years of hollow talking points from the Albanese government aren’t washing with the public any more as we watch a genocide in real time.”
Shoebridge argued that, under international law, component parts were considered weapons.
“Watching the defence minister, Richard Marles, refuse to answer basic questions about Australia’s export of weapons parts and defence material to Israel is excruciating,” he said in a statement.
“The Australian public knows that the Albanese government is permitting the export of armoured steel, F-35 weapons parts and other critical materials to Israel and wants it to stop.”
Shoebridge said if the Albanese government stopped the export of F-35 parts to Israel, their fleet would, in time, be grounded. “The fact Albanese is choosing not to do that makes us complicit,” he said.
Donald Rothwell, a professor of international law at the Australian National University, said Australian exports of component weapon parts to the IDF were “contributing to the Israeli military campaign in Gaza”.
“Part of the difficulty is that there can be so many component parts of weapons. Some component parts may have been exported to Israel for civilian use but then utilised for weapons,” he said on Sunday.
“The clearer position that Australia could take is that if it diplomatically, legally and politically objects to Israel’s occupation of Gaza, then all exports could be suspended for the time being. That would be the clearest way of ensuring that no Australian exports contribute to the Israeli military effort in Gaza.”
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Rothwell said he “would not be as decisive as Senator Shoebridge as to his interpretation of international law”.
Guardian Australia reported in November that Australia had amended or lapsed at least 16 defence-related export permits to Israel. A spokesperson said all of the permits were approved before the 7 October terror attacks by Hamas and none related to weapons or ammunition.
The ABC reported in April that a remote weapon system designed and built by an Australian company was one of dozens of counter-drone technologies tested by Israel this year.
The Australian Centre for International Justice, a non-profit legal centre, is among organisations questioning the government’s claims on military exports.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said Australia had appropriate sanctions in place against members of Israel’s war cabinet and would not publicly discuss other considerations.
“What we need to do here is to have very clear statements and actions by the Australian government that make a difference, rather than respond to a slogan on a protest,” he said during a visit to New Zealand.
Albanese said the government wanted hostages held by Hamas released and for urgent aid to stop the “humanitarian catastrophe” unfolding in Gaza.
Australia’s opposition home affairs spokesman, Andrew Hastie, told Sky that Netanyahu’s plan to control Gaza City was “a very risky proposition” and could add to the humanitarian crisis.
“It would be incredibly difficult for IDF troops to move through and clear. All the advantage would be with Hamas defenders and anyone else who would stand and fight.”
The foreign minister, Penny Wong, joined Germany, Italy, New Zealand and the UK in a joint statement on Saturday, stating Israel’s plan would make an already perilous situation worse and risked breaching international law.
London’s high court ruled a month ago that Britain’s decision to allow the export of F-35 fighter jet components to Israel, despite accepting they could be used in breach of international humanitarian law in Gaza, was lawful.