BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 20. The Australian government has announced a decision to evacuate all Australian officials and their families from Iran and suspend embassy operations in Tehran indefinitely due to the deteriorating security situation, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said, Trend reports.
"The Australian government has instructed all officials and their families to leave Iran and suspended embassy operations in Tehran based on an assessment of the deteriorating security situation in the country," the head of the Foreign Ministry said.
According to her, the Australian Ambassador to Iran will remain in the region to support the government's crisis response efforts.
"The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is deploying consular officers to Azerbaijan to support Australians leaving Iran. We strongly encourage Australians who can safely leave Iran to do so now. For those who cannot or do not want to leave, we advise them to take precautions," the minister stressed.
She also noted that due to the current situation and closed airspace, consular support in Iran is extremely limited.
"We continue our work through the 24-hour Consular Emergency Assistance Centre and are in touch with Australian citizens through the crisis portal," Wong added.