Nothing to see here, says Penny Wong about Israel brief she hasn’t read

DFAT’s official country briefing on Israel makes no mention of regional conflicts; Penny Wong defends Australia’s cybersecurity cooperation with Israel. Stephanie Tran with story.

Inside Senate Estimates Last week Greens Senator David Shoebridge questioned Foreign Secretary Penny Wong and senior officials about why. DFAT’s Israel Country Summary It makes no mention of occupied Palestinian territory, settler violence in the West Bank, or ongoing genocide in Gaza.

“I find it surprising that in the country briefing on Israel there is not a single mention of the occupied territories, Gaza, settler violence or the conflict in Gaza. How is it that none of this is included in the Australian government’s country briefing on Israel?” said Shoebridge.

Paul Griffiths, DFAT’s Deputy First Secretary for the Middle East and Africa and former ambassador to Israel, told the hearing that the briefing contained only “essential” information and said:

the situation in the region was “moving very quickly”.

Shoebridge rejected this statement, noting that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory dates back decades. “Are you saying that since the late 1960s DFAT has never been able to talk about this because it has moved so quickly? That cannot be your evidence, Mr Griffiths,” he said.

Griffiths replied: “No, Senator, that is the situation we find ourselves in at the moment.”

Compare Israel to Morocco

Shoebridge compared the Israeli briefing with DFAT’s country briefing on Morocco, which referred to Morocco’s occupation of Western Sahara. He asked whether a “political decision” had been taken to “eliminate all disturbing facts” about Israel.

Wong denied any political involvement and stated that he had not read the document before, saying: “Absolutely not. Can I say that I have never actually looked at that country summary?”

I don’t usually read country summaries.

“What we are paying close attention to is travel advice,” he said, acknowledging that the summary “does not reflect some changes in the government’s policy position, including the recognition of Palestine.”

UN’s “unfair targeting” claim questioned

Shoebridge also raised the statement in the briefing that Australia “strongly opposes unfair targeting of Israel at the United Nations and other multilateral institutions” and pressed the government to explain what “unfair targeting” means.

Griffiths points out Article seven of the UN Human Rights CouncilFocusing on the human rights situation in occupied Palestine, the organization states that “we have reservations about any move that specifically targets a single country.”

What about Russia?

Shoebridge asked whether this principle also extends to UN resolutions targeting Russia.

Wong said only that DFAT would review the briefing and made the following statement regarding the statement:

“What I would like to say to you, Senator, on the UN vote is that the conflict, the conflict and the strife in the region and the different views between different groups, including those who support the State of Israel and the Palestinian cause, are also played out at the United Nations from time to time. So I think that is correct and you will see Australia reconsidering its position in terms of the range of votes at the UN to reflect the position that the government has taken. We support two states.”

MWM He asked Minister Wong to clarify whether he believed Israel was unfairly targeted by the UN. His office did not provide a response.

The senator also questioned why Israel’s capital was not mentioned in the country briefing. When asked directly what the government recognizes as Israel’s capital, Wong replied only: “Our embassy is in Tel Aviv.” Griffiths added that the situation is as follows:

Jerusalem remained a “final status issue.”

West Jerusalem Trade and Defense Office was quietly closed

Shoebridge asked for more details about the closure of the West Jerusalem Trade and Defense Office, which was established in 2019 by the former Coalition government as part of the brief recognition of West Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

“When did that place close?” he asked.

Griffiths said he could not give a date and told the committee the department would “take that into consideration”. He merely stated that the closure was “recent.”

The Ministry did not respond to previous questions MWM Information was given about when the West Jerusalem Trade and Defense Office was closed and the reasons underlying this decision.

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Israel’s cybersecurity and defense memorandum of understanding

Shoebridge then turned to Australia’s defense and cybersecurity cooperation with Israel, pressing the government on the status of the 2017 defense industry Memorandum of Understanding and the 2019 cybersecurity Memorandum of Understanding. Griffiths said Australia was not considering terminating the agreements “at this time”.

Wong defended ongoing cybersecurity efforts, saying: “We are in contact with many countries, including countries with which we do not always agree on everything.”

Senator Shoebridge warns Israeli cyber firms since signing of 2019 cybersecurity Memorandum became an accomplice in a genocide and the technology produced by the ADF was removed by Israeli company Elbit Systems from Army equipment due to fears it could be used to collect sensitive data from the ADF.

“Engaging with a country is one thing. Making a memorandum of understanding with a regime that has that history is a very different thing,” he said.

The Ministry will “take into consideration” the status of the MoU.

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