MOSCOW, August 9 (RIA Novosti) – Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Saturday his country may participate in sending humanitarian aid to Iraqi civilians along with the United States, Agence France-Presse reported Saturday.
"We are talking to the Americans about possible Australian participation in these humanitarian airdrops," Abbott told journalists.
"There is a looming humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in northern Iraq right now," prime minister added.
According to the country’s prime minister, Australia has some transport assets in the Middle East, in particular there is a possibility of using two C-130 aircraft based in the United Arab Emirates.
On Thursday, US President Barack Obama authorized targeted airstrikes against the extremists of Islamic State (IS) in Iraq, as well as airdrops of food and water supplies for the Kurdish minority of Yezidis, who are facing genocide, according to the US authorities. On Friday, the Pentagon announced that US combat aircraft had already conducted three airstrikes.
The Islamic State is a Sunni group that has been fighting in Syria and launched an offensive in Iraq in June. The group has taken over large parts of the country, with the goal of seizing Baghdad. Also in June, the group announced the establishment of a caliphate on the Iraq-Syria border.
Iraqi Kurds have already re-established military cooperation with Baghdad in an effort to drive the IS fighters back. Like Moscow, the United Nations Security Council has called on all Iraqi communities to unite and respond to the threat to Iraq’s future.
