• Reports in New York Times indicate Barack Obama had begun to mobilise coalition of allies behind potential US military action in Syria and expanded air strikes in Iraq • Kurdish representative to Australia asks the government to provide military support and ammunition in fight against Islamic State forces

This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

Australia has left the door open to contributing to US-led air strikes in Iraq but indicated it was not considering putting combat forces on the ground.

Tony Abbott’s office said the prime minister would consider any request from the US “based on whether there is an achievable overall humanitarian purpose and a clear and proportionate role for Australia as well as on a careful assessment of the risks”.

Australia outlined its position following a report in the New York Times indicating that Barack Obama had begun to mobilise a broad coalition of allies behind potential American military action in Syria and was moving towards expanded air strikes in Iraq.

The New York Times cited US administration officials as saying they expected Britain and Australia would be willing to join the US in an air campaign.

Meanwhile, a Kurdish representative to Australia has asked the federal government to join the US and other nations in providing military support and ammunition to assist them in the fight against Islamic State in northern Iraq.

Abbott’s office said the government had made it clear that Islamic State, also known as Isis, represented “a serious threat, not only in Iraq and Syria and the wider Middle East, but also to Australia’s national security”.

“The government has been transparent about our intentions in Iraq,” a spokeswoman said.

“To date, our focus has been doing what we can to avert an even greater humanitarian tragedy in Iraq, including by air-dropping food and water to many thousands of desperate people on Mount Sinjar.

“The prime minister has made it clear that Australia is ready to continue our humanitarian involvement in Iraq. Our response to any request from the United States, or other close allies and partners, will be based on whether there is an achievable overall humanitarian purpose and a clear and proportionate role for Australia as well as on a careful assessment of the risks.

“Australia is not considering putting combat forces on the ground; nor, for that matter, is the United States.”

It is understood the Labor opposition has not received a briefing on the latest developments.

The deputy leader of the Australian Greens, Adam Bandt, said Abbott must bring the matter to parliament for debate.

“The public and parliamentarians should not be finding out about potential Australian military involvement from US newspapers,” Bandt said.

“The Greens have been raising concerns about ‘mission creep’ for some time now.”

In parliament on Tuesday, Bandt sought a specific assurance from Abbott that troop deployments would be debated by MPs.

The prime minister stopped short of promising a parliamentary debate but said he would not commit forces without “the fullest possible consideration”, cabinet discussion, and consultation with the opposition.

At the time Abbott praised Obama for authorising air strikes to halt the advance of the Isis movement and said talks were continuing “between the US and its close partners on what can best be done to continue to relieve the humanitarian situation in northern Iraq”.

Heval Syan, a representative of the Kurdistan regional government (KRG) in Iraq, urged Australia to provide support to the Peshmerga with humanitarian assistance and military support, in a letter to the foreign minister, Julie Bishop.

“Deliveries of the military equipment and ammunitions are urgently needed for Peshmerga to achieve gains on the ground,” said the letter from Syan.

“It is now time for the international community especially the Australian

government to step forward urgently and provide the KRG with humanitarian assistance and military support, particularly equipment and air support.”

Seven nations have joined the US and Iraq in pledging to arm Kurdish forces in their fight against the Islamic State, despite concerns about bolstering Kurdish separatism in the region.

Albania, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Italy, France and the UK had “committed to helping provide Kurdish forces urgently needed arms and equipment”, said the US defence secretary, Chuck Hagel, on Tuesday.

Earlier this month Abbott announced that two C-130 Hercules aircraft based in the United Arab Emirates would be available to carry out food and supply drops in the region.

“We believe that Australian government can do more than that by supporting the Kurds through the humanitarian assistance, military support, particularly equipment and ammunitions and air support,” Syan wrote to Bishop.

Bishop was questioned by her opposition counterpart, Tanya Plibersek, on whether she had received the letter, after Bishop said specifically in an ABC radio interview on Wednesday morning that she had not been asked by Kurdistan to supply weapons.

Bishop referred Plibersek to a Sky News interview she had done earlier that afternoon but which had not yet aired, and said she had investigated the matter, discovering the letter was sent to her office on the 18 August when she was in Singapore.

“Because it did not come from an accredited diplomat or a nation state it was sent to the lawyers to consider the status of the letter,” Bishop told parliament.

“I was not aware of the letter this morning. I was aware of the request that had been considered by a national security committee.”

During the Sky interview, Bishop said the Australian government had received a number of requests including from the Kurds, and it was currently working through the request to see how the Kurdish government could work with the Iraqi government.

“We’ve been asked to look at humanitarian support and that is what we’re providing,” she said.

“Anything further would be the subject of considerable discussion within national security.”

Bishop would not be drawn on whether Australia was considering the request for weapons, or whether the US or Iraq had made a request.