US-Iran war updates: Donald Trump hints at renewed peace talks in Pakistan, Israel-Lebanon talks conclude

Jim Chalmers says the government has all hands on deck as it seeks to secure Australia’s fuel supplies amid the global oil crisis arising from the war in the Middle East.

The Treasurer flew to Washington DC on Wednesday morning for talks with counterparts from key countries that supply fuel to Australia, as well as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

The IMF issued a warning overnight about the looming risk of a global recession and urged the government to avoid cost-of-living relief measures that could fuel inflation in its Budget next month.

Dr Chalmers will meet ministers from Singapore, Japan, Korea, Indonesia and the UK, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong are holding talks with leaders from Brunei and Malaysia.

“In our government, it is all hands on deck when it comes comes to securing more fuel, engaging with industry, engaging with our international partners to try and get through a difficult period for the global economy and the consequences for our own economy and for Australians in communities right around our country,” Dr Chalmers told reporters at Brisbane Airport before his departure.

“The IMF is sounding the alarm in some pretty severe scenarios that they have published overnight.”

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Donald Trump, when pushed on whether the war with Iran was “over” in a new interview, says it’s “close to over”.

Mr Trump sat down with Maria Bartiromo from Fox Business for an exclusive interview.

“I had to divert. If I didn’t do that, right now you would have Iran with a nuclear weapon,” Mr Trump said in an excerpt from the interview posted online.

“If they had a nuclear weapon, you would be calling everyone over there sir, and you don’t want to do that.”

Bartiromo interjected, saying Mr Trump keeps saying “was”, presumable in other comments in the interview, asking: “Is this war over?”

“I think it’s close to over, yeah. I mean, I view it as very close to over.

If I pulled up stakes right now, it would take them 20 years to rebuild that country. And were not finished. We’ll see what happens. I think they want to make a deal very badly.”

US President Donald Trump has labelled a UK move as “tragic”, telling the country to “DRILL, BABY, DRILL” in the North Sea.

“Europe is desperate for Energy, and yet the United Kingdom refuses to open North Sea Oil, one of the greatest fields in the World. Tragic!!!” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“Aberdeen should be booming. Norway sells its North Sea Oil to the U.K. at double the price.

“They are making a fortune. U.K., which is better situated on the North Sea for purposes of energy than Norway, should, DRILL, BABY, DRILL!!!

“It is absolutely crazy that they don’t… AND, NO MORE WINDMILLS!”

One of the world’s richest men will welcome Anthony Albanese to the gold-studded royal palace of Brunei Darussalam, with the prime minister seeking to leverage Australia’s food exports in a bid to shore up long-term fuel supplies.

Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, currently the world’s longest-serving head of state, is expected to discuss the oil crisis driven by the war in the Middle East with Mr Albanese, during the pair’s official talks on Wednesday.

While Brunei is a smaller fuel producer than other countries in the region such as Singapore and Malaysia, Australia still imports nine per cent of its diesel, 11 per cent of its crude oil and 11 per cent of its fertiliser-grade urea from the tiny sultanate.

Australia is also a large provider of food to Brunei, having supplied around three quarters of its meat imports in 2024.

Mr Albanese’s approach of focusing on what Australia brings to the table echoes his negotiations with other Southeast Asian nations including Singapore, where he has sought priority access to fuel supplies by guaranteeing shipments of critical goods like liquified natural gas.

Alongside Foreign Minister Penny Wong, the prime minister will also tour Brunei Fertilizer Industries, meeting with chief executive Harri Kiiski as part of the government’s push to secure long-term fertiliser stocks which have also been impacted by interruption of trade through the Middle East.

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Lebanon and Israel have opened their first direct diplomatic talks in decades in Washington, DC, following more than a month of war between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio calling it a “historic opportunity” but making clear no breakthrough agreement was immediately expected.

Mr Rubio said the United States was “very happy” to be facilitating the discussions, while noting that “we understand we’re working against decades of history and complexities” that will not be quickly resolved.

Hezbollah opposes the direct talks and was not represented, while the Iranian-aligned group appeared to step up its fire on northern Israel as the discussions began.

“But we can begin to move forward with a framework where something can happen, something very positive, something very permanent, so that the people of Lebanon can have the kind of future they deserve, and so that the people of Israel can live without fear,” Mr Rubio said.

Despite Hezbollah’s outright rejection, the talks are a major step for two countries with no diplomatic relations that have been officially at war since Israel’s inception in 1948.

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US President Donald Trump says Iran talks could resume in Pakistan over the next two days, according to an interview with the New York Post.

“You should stay there, really, because something could be happening over the next two days, and we’re more inclined to go there,” Mr Trump was quoted as saying.

Mr Trump said Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, was doing a “great job” on the talks.

“He’s fantastic, and therefore it’s more likely that we go back there,” Mr Trump said.

The collapse of weekend negotiations prompted the United States to impose a blockade on Iranian ports.

The initial round of talks ended without an agreement on Iran’s nuclear ambitions, which the White House said was a central sticking point.

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