Australia to send aircraft and air-to-air missiles to Gulf to ‘protect and defend’ civilians, PM says

<p>Anthony Albanese announces surveillance aircraft, air-to-air missiles and supporting personnel will be deployed to the UAE after request from their president</p><ul><li><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2026/mar/10/iran-football-team-tony-burke-anthony-albanese-labor-angus-taylor-coalition-oil-price-inflation-federal-parliament-ntwnfb">Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates</a></p></li><li><p>Get our <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/email-newsletters?CMP=cvau_sfl">breaking news email</a>, <a href="https://app.adjust.com/w4u7jx3">free app</a> or <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/series/full-story?CMP=cvau_sfl">daily news podcast</a></p></li></ul><p>Australia will send a specialist surveillance aircraft and stocks of air-to-air missiles to the United Arab Emirates, in what Anthony Albanese said is an effort to help protect Australians in the region <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/mar/09/australia-iran-war-assistance-middle-east-nations">under threat from Iranian attack</a>.</p><p>As the Iran war grows, the prime minister announced the assistance on Tuesday morning after talks with the UAE’s president, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and US president Donald Trump overnight. Iran has attacked a dozen countries since the start of US and Israeli bombings and the death of the country’s supreme leader, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/01/ayatollah-ali-khamenei-obituary">Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.</a></p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/10/australia-to-send-aircraft-and-air-to-air-missiles-to-gulf-to-protect-and-defend-civilians-pm-says">Continue reading...</a>