Dr Emma Shortis
Director of the Australia Institute’s International & Security Affairs Program

With his threat to “take over” the Gaza strip this morning, Donald Trump – with an all too willing accomplice in Benjamin Netanyahu – has finally broken what was left of the international rule of law. 

For Australia, this means that the values that supposedly underpin our Alliance with the United States are also gone. Trump has thrown them out, as he always said he would. 

It is in Australia’s interests to stand up for the international rule of law, in Gaza and elsewhere. It is in our interests to stand up for our values, and to use this as the basis of a renewed conversation with the US.

We should never be complicit in Trump’s violent imperialism. The international rule of law matters to us, because without it, the world – already a dangerous place – will be a lot less safe for everyone.