Aussie FM’s Iran visit gave regime ‘undeserved legitimacy,’ Jewish group says

A Jewish pro-Israel advocacy group in Australia criticized the country’s foreign minister for her visit of to Iran over the weekend, during which she agreed to share intelligence. They argued that her trip prematurely legitimized a murderous regime that shows no willingness to moderate its aggressive policies.

Julie Bishop, who became the first Australian minister to visit Tehran in over a decade, defended her trip and her pledges to cooperate with the Islamic Republic. It was in her country’s interest to share intelligence with Iran to best fight the Islamic State terrorist group, many of whose members hail from Australia, she said.

“We are concerned that this visit will, unintentionally, confer unwarranted, premature acceptance and undeserved legitimacy on an unreformed, repressive Iranian leadership,” said Colin Rubenstein, the executive director of the Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council. Iran violates human rights and promotes terrorism, relentlessly calls for Israel’s annihilation, and fanatically propagates anti-Semitism, he added.

“There is no evidence whatsoever of Iranian moderation or that Iran is only seeking civilian nuclear power while allowing adequate inspection that should satisfy everyone, including Israel, as Foreign Minister Bishop was told,” he said.

The Israeli government and several Australian Jewish groups had called on Bishop to denounce Iran’s support for terrorism and anti-Israel agitation, but refrained from publicly criticizing her over the visit.

Bishop, a staunch supporter of Israel, on Monday defended her “informal arrangement to share information” with Tehran regarding active, former and potential Islamic State fighters.

“We have a specific interest in this,” she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, since there are Australian citizens who support IS. “Iran and other nations want to stem the flow of foreign terrorist fighters into their region. We want information on the Australians that are seeking to travel to Iraq and Syria or indeed are there. And should they seek to return to Australia, we need the evidence of what they were doing in Iraq and Syria, because they could well be in breach of our criminal laws,” she explained.

“So we want information on who the Australians are in Iraq and Syria, and of course Iran wants to stop the flow of terrorist fighters into their region,” she said.

Asked by the interview how Iran, a leading state sponsor of terrorism, can be trusted, Bishop replied that it was the job of Australian intelligence agencies to analyze and verify information from whatever source it comes. “So it’s in our interests to gain as much information as we can on those Australians who are seeking to take part in terrorist activities in Iraq and Syria and beyond.”

Rubenstein, of the Australia/Israel and Jewish Affairs Council, also criticized Bishop for inviting Iranian officials to Australia to further discuss cooperation on a range of bilateral and multilateral issues. Her invitation and her stated “interest expressed in tapping Iranian strategies on deradicalization are also somewhat problematic gestures,” he said.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office were unhappy about Bishop’s visit to Tehran. But officials refused to say so on the record, since they did not want to jeopardize good relations with Canberra. Rather than publicly antagonizing Canberra, Jerusalem will express its disapproval through diplomatic channels, a senior official told The Times of Israel last week.

“The Israelis are well aware of the reasons why I visited Tehran,” Bishop said Monday. “They understand that there are a number of bilateral and regional issues that we need to discuss and resolve with Iran and they understand the purpose of my visit.”

While she understands that some might be concerned about Iran’s nuclear program and the framework deal signed with six world powers earlier this month, Australia was not a party to the negotiations, she added. The purpose of her trip was to discuss Australian troops fighting IS in Iraq and the return of Iranians seeking asylum who are found not to be refugees, she explained.

Bishop is known for taking stances in support of current Israeli policies; in January 2014 she made headlines when she told The Times of Israel that West Bank settlements should not be called illegal.

Her unusual stance regarding settlements is one of the main reasons for Israeli officials keeping mum on her trailblazing trip to Tehran, a senior official in Jerusalem told the Walla news website. “It was very unpleasant to read what she said about Iran and terrorism. She portrayed the Iranians as partners in the fight against terrorism, while they are the greatest supporters of terrorism in the world. But since she’s a pro-Israel minister our position is currently to refrain from criticism,” the official said.

However, the official added, there is “no doubt” that Jerusalem’s response would have been “entirely different” had the first senior official to visit Iran been American.

Together with the United States, Australia was one of only two members of the United Nations Security Council that voted last year against the Palestinians’ resolution calling for an Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank. A similar resolution is expected to be proposed soon and Jerusalem hopes that Canberra will again oppose it.