PETER STEFANOVIC, HOST: Foreign Minister Penny Wong has directed the departure of dependants of Australian officials posted to the UAE due to the deteriorating security situation. That was a post she put up last night. Joining us live is her assistant now, Matt Thistlethwaite. Matt, so a similar warning was issued on February 26 before the war. So, what's different about this one?
MATT THISTLETHWAITE, ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE: Obviously, the Department of Foreign Affairs, Pete, makes daily assessments around the safety and security of the dependants of our officials working within the region, and we’ve determined that to keep Australians safe, it's best that they depart the region. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has a no double standards policy, so when we make decisions about diplomats and their families, we also make similar decisions about the Australian people. And as you pointed out, since late February, we've had a “Do not travel” warning and a “Leave the region” warning as well for places like the UAE for Australians more broadly.
STEFANOVIC: Given consulates have been struck, at what point do you close our embassies or consulates in the region and get the actual officials out?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: Yeah, we make those daily assessments. The important thing at the moment for the officials, is that we've got quite a few Australians who are living and working in the region, and many tourists who are seeking to come home. So, those officials are working around the clock. We've actually sent people over to the region, we've sent six crisis response teams to the region. They're doing hotel visits, they're doing phone calls, they're doing tele town halls with Australians that are seeking to come home to provide them with the most up-to-date information.
STEFANOVIC: Ok, just on this request now, Matt, which has come for Australia to play a defensive role in the Middle East, is there any more information that you can share this morning on that?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: I can't add anything to what the Foreign Minister said yesterday. We have had a request, and our assessment is going on regarding that. We can't comment anymore on that. But the principles upon which we've been involved relate to our support for the United States action to stop Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon. That would be disastrous for the region and for the world. And that's the principle upon which we've engaged in this. And that principle still holds at the moment. So, that’s the basis.
STEFANOVIC: Right. Is that manpower? Is that military equipment? Is it supplies? Can you specify which one, or all of them?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: I can't go into it. I can't go into it at the moment, Pete. Just safe to say that requests are being considered.
STEFANOVIC: Okay, requests considered. But who made the request? Can you at least say that?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: No, I can't go into that either for national security reasons.
STEFANOVIC: Okay. Just elsewhere this morning, would you provide those Iranian female footballers with asylum if they asked?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: It's been great to see the Iranian women's team participating in the Asian Cup, and it was a touching moment to see them exchanging jerseys with the Australian team members the other night when they played each other. As to requests and issues associated with visas, we don't go into individual circumstances for privacy reasons. So, anyone that seeks to come to Australia or applies for a visa obviously must meet the conditions, but I can't go into the specifics of details --
STEFANOVIC: Has a request been made on that front, though?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: I can't go into details, Pete. We don't disclose the particulars of people's visa matters for privacy reasons.
STEFANOVIC: Okay. Are you concerned they might be in trouble if they go home, though?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: We don't want to make any comments that might prejudice any decisions later on, so we don't discuss those individual cases for privacy reasons.
STEFANOVIC: Ok. Elsewhere, this is a national security problem, too, that Jack just highlighted a short time ago. With the price of oil surging, it's likely to hit 100 US a barrel. Now you've got fuel giant United Petroleum, which is rationing petrol and diesel supplies, citing uncertainty in global oil markets. Do you think that's necessary for them to ration?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: Australia has fuel reserves. So, we've got well over a month's worth of diesel and unleaded petrol. The majority of our fuel doesn't actually come through the Strait of Hormuz. It comes from other means, and most of that is still getting to Australia. So, normal supplies are there. But we obviously know that the longer this conflict goes on, the more potential it has to affect fuel prices, and we're monitoring that on a daily basis. The Treasurer has also written to the ACCC to make sure that they monitor retailers.
STEFANOVIC: Is there a need to ration, though, at this stage?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: Well, that's a matter for the fuel retailers, but Australia has the largest supplies that we've had for the last five years. Our government's been conscious of trying to build up the stocks of fuel reserves, including urea, which is the precursor to AdBlue as well, which is important for diesel. So, we've got the largest stocks that we've had for at least the last five years as a result of our assets.
STEFANOVIC: Well, so, given what you said there, there's no need to ration?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: That's a matter for the retailers. We would hope that they don't need to ration and that normal fuel supplies are there. And the fact that Australians shouldn't need to panic buy at the moment, I think, is pretty important as well.
STEFANOVIC: Well, I mean, Chris Bowen said that last week. He said don't panic. So, are you of mind that that particular call shouldn't change?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: Yeah, that's correct. At the moment, people shouldn't be panic buying. There are adequate supplies of fuel coming through. They're both getting through to Australia, and we have those reserve stocks as well.
STEFANOVIC: Are we getting, I'll finish up on this point though, are we exposed here for not having enough onshore? I mean, we've got the two refineries, we've got 30 days, as you've just pointed out. We've got access to oil which is based in the United States, and this isn't just a you problem, this is previous governments as well. But are we being exposed here for not having enough onshore?
ASSISTANT MINISTER: Well, you're right. The previous Liberal government's approach was to have the reserves in the United States. We've taken a distinct decision to try and boost our stocks of reserves here in Australia on Australian soil. And we've been able to achieve that with well over a month's worth of supplies for those important elements. We'll continue to make sure that we've got the policies in place to ensure that Australia has adequate supplies of fuel, and that people shouldn't have to panic buy.
STEFANOVIC: Okay. That's the Assistant Foreign Minister, Matt Thistlethwaite, joining us on this Monday morning. Appreciate it, Matt. Thank you.