Published 04:22 IST, January 19th 2021
Australia PM Morrison calls Trump's US Capitol riot remark 'incredibly disappointing'
PM Morrison said Australia had done work “behind the scenes” to engage with like-minded countries, in reference to the transition of power in the US
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said that the comments made by US President Donald Trump were “incredibly disappointing” and led to a “terrible” outcome, referring to the US Capitol riots. Earlier, Morrison had said that he was hoping for a peaceful transfer of power in the US.
Morrison condemns US Capitol riots
On Monday, January 18, Morrison told the local media that he had spoken to US President-elect Joe Biden not so long after the elections. He added that Australia had done work “behind the scenes” to engage with like-minded countries, in reference to the transition of power in the US. Also, he had distanced himself from Trump saying that he had “worked closely” with him as prime minister but he countered suggestions that they were friends.
According to AP reports, Morrison said, “This is one of the world's greatest democracies and it remains so because of its forbearance and its persistence in the principles and values upon which the nation was established and I have no doubt that that will prevail”. Australia warned its citizens to avoid US protests.
Earlier on January 6, a group of Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol to protest legislators confirming electoral slates from battleground US states as they thought were invalid. This reaction by Trump’s supporters came after Trump had made a speech among thousands of supporters reiterating his claim that massive voter fraud has robbed his election victory and encouraged supporters to maintain support to "stop the steal".
As per the reports 5 people died, including 1 police officer as well as 1 Air force veteran and Trump supporter who was shot dead by the police. Following the incident, a total of 10 Republicans broke ranks with the GOP to join their Democrat colleagues to vote in the impeachment resolution, in contrast to the year 2020, when not a single Republican voted for Trump's impeachment.
(Image Credits: AP)
Updated 04:22 IST, January 19th 2021