CANBERRA: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that three Australian defence personnel were aboard a United States submarine that sank an Iranian warship near Sri Lanka earlier this week.
Speaking on Friday, Albanese said the three members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) were on board the American vessel as part of a long-standing training arrangement designed to give Australian sailors experience operating nuclear-powered submarines.
He stressed that the Australians present did not take part in the attack.
“No Australian personnel participated in any offensive action against Iran,” Albanese said, adding that their presence on the submarine was consistent with Australian law and defence policy.
The submarine involved in the incident has been identified as the USS Charlotte, a US fast-attack submarine. According to available reports, the vessel fired a Mark 48 torpedo that struck and sank the Iranian frigate IRIS Dena in international waters south of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan authorities later reported recovering 87 bodies from the sea and rescuing 32 survivors following the strike.
The deployment of Australian personnel on the submarine was part of the AUKUS security partnership between Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom.
The arrangement allows Australian sailors to train alongside US and British crews as Australia prepares to acquire nuclear-powered submarines in the coming years.
Albanese said he chose to confirm the presence of the Australian personnel due to the level of public interest surrounding the incident.
Earlier, Australian officials, including Foreign Minister Penny Wong, had declined to comment on the specific deployment. The prime minister said the details were confirmed after discussions within the government’s National Security Committee.
According to defence analysts, the strike is notable because it is reportedly the first time since World War II that a US submarine has sunk an enemy vessel using a torpedo.
The incident has taken place amid the escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, which has raised tensions across the Middle East and surrounding regions.
