Scott Morrison asks Washington embassy to investigate attack on Australian TV crew
Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke with United States President Donald Trump after an Australian reporter was attacked by police while covering riots in Washington, but he was unaware of the incident when the phone call took place.
Mr Morrison has asked the Australian embassy in Washington to investigate the attack on Channel 7's US correspondent Amelia Brace and her cameraman Timothy Myers, and requested advice on how to register Australia's "strong concerns" with local authorities in Washington.
Australia's relationship with the US is being tested by the escalating chaos raging across the country, as well as Mr Trump's invitation to Australia to join the G7 group of nations along with Russia, India and South Korea.
In a blow to Mr Trump's plan to expand the G7 without the inclusion of China, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday said inviting Russia back to the word's most exclusive group of nations would be unacceptable because it was a place "for frank conversations among allies and friends".
Mr Trudeau's intervention puts Australia in an awkward position. The Morrison government will not refuse the opportunity join the expanded G7, but also does not want to be seen to be joining the US in a China containment policy, especially at a time when Mr Trump is increasingly isolated from other world leaders and facing a domestic crisis with the riots.
Ms Brace was reporting from the White House on the riots on Tuesday morning Australian time when heavily-armed police began aggressively pushing the crowd back, before shoving her and punching Mr Myers. Federal authorities used rubber bullets, flash grenades and gas to clear protesters from the area shortly before Mr Trump gave a nearby speech threatening to deploy federal troops.
Shortly after the attack on the Channel 7 crew, Mr Trump rang Mr Morrison to personally offer Australia a seat at the G7 table.
According to senior government sources, Mr Morrison was unaware of the assault on the Channel 7 crew at the time of his call with the US president.
After becoming aware of the footage the Prime Minister contacted Channel 7 to check on the crew's welfare and assure them of the government's support should they wish to pursue a formal complaint with the local police.
The Australian embassy has also contacted the pair to check on their wellbeing, and Mr Morrison has asked the embassy to investigate the incident and provide advice on how Australia should register its concerns with US authorities.
In their phone call, Mr Morrison told Mr Trump he was pleased to take up the invitation as he had done last year when he was invited to a G7 meeting by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Both leaders discussed the riots and unrest in the US and efforts to ensure it would be resolved peacefully, according to a readout of the phone call.
In his speech on Monday, Mr Trump threatened to deploy federal troops if state and local government leaders didn't succeed in stamping out the acts of violence and looting, which have been sparked by protests over the police killing of African-American man George Floyd in Minneapolis.