Australia will deploy a military surveillance aircraft to the Middle East and send missiles to the United Arab Emirates, but will not put troops on the ground in Iran, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday (March 10, 2026). Australia’s military support would help the Gulf countries defend themselves against unprovoked attacks from Iran, Mr. Albanese said, stressing Australia was “not a protagonist”. Also Read: Israel-Iran war LIVE updates“Our involvement is purely defensive,” Mr. Albanese told reporters. Advanced medium-range air-to-air missiles would be provided to the United Arab Emirates, following a phone call with President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, he added. The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas, as the conflict escalated.
