Albanese government ‘glad' Iran's nuclear program ‘set back', senior minister says
The minister in charge of Australia's national security has kept tight-lipped on the damage US strikes dealt to Iranian nuclear facilities last week.
Leaked US intelligence suggested the attack had only set Iran's nuclear program back a few months, casting serious doubt on Donald Trump's claim it had been 'obliterated'.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Sunday refused to comment on intelligence on the US strikes, but said there is no doubt they set back Iran's nuclear program.
'First of all, it is in the interests of global peace that Iran does not have a capacity with nuclear weapons,' Mr Burke told Sky News.
'Iran has been in breach of international obligations on that and the US strikes were targeted very specifically at the potential of nuclear weapons from Iran, and we are glad that those setbacks have occurred.'
The US President has responded to the leaked intelligence by lashing out at the 'fake news' media that reported it and ordering an investigation while doubling down on his original assessment.
Mr Trump's position has been closely echoed by his cabinet, including Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who accused the White House press corps of cheering 'against Trump'.
'Because you want him not to be successful so badly, you have to cheer against the efficacy of the strikes,' he told reporters earlier this.
'You have to hope they were not effective.'
Asked directly about the debate raging in the US over the outcome of the strikes, Mr Burke said he understood the conversation 'has been the extent of the setbacks'.
'But I haven't seen anyone doubt that the US strikes on those sites has caused a significant setback for Iran's capability in terms of developing nuclear weapons,' he said.
Last week's operation involved US B-2 stealth bombers flying 36 hours to drop so-called bunker-buster bombs on three Iranian facilities, including Fordow, which is nestled deep in a mountainous area.
The US action came after Israel launched an air offensive targeting Iranian nuclear and military sites.
The offensive killed dozens of senior atomic scientists and military officials.
In the week leading up to Israel's 'pre-emptive' strikes, the UN's atomic watchdog declared that Iran was breaching its obligations, with inspectors admitting they could not say if the Islamic republic's nuclear program was 'exclusively peaceful'.
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