Joint military strikes on Iran by the United States and Israel have drawn criticism over their legality while fueling concerns about energy supplies and economic stability, including the potential implications for Australia.

"The joint attacks by the United States and Israel are in violation of international law," Robert Barwick, national chairman of the Australian Citizens Party, told China Daily in an exclusive interview.

Barwick said the Israeli and US governments had reached "a new depth of lawlessness", and that they are not seriously attempting to justify the attacks but merely going through the motions.

He said that all statements made by the two countries in defense of the strikes were weak, including claims that the Iranian government had killed tens of thousands of protesters or that Iran had been close to developing a nuclear bomb.

Barwick said attacking Iran while "pretending to negotiate with them" had "destroyed all trust in the US".

The escalating tensions have also heightened concerns about the potential economic fallout.

Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Michele Bullock said the central bank was "very alert" to the potential implications for inflation expectations arising from the situation.

"These events are a timely reminder that in this world of geopolitical uncertainty, things can change quickly," she said at the Australian Financial Review Business Summit on Tuesday.

Bullock said it would take some time to make sense of what it could mean for inflation in Australia, noting that a supply shock could, for example, add to inflationary pressures in the near term. She said a prolonged impact on energy markets could have adverse effects on global economic activity and subsequently exert downward pressure on inflation.

Barwick from the Australian Citizens Party said the military strikes on Iran would have negative implications for energy supplies and prices in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

"The most immediate impact of the illegal attack on Iran is on global energy supplies and prices," Barwick said.

He said that the biggest economies in the Asia-Pacific rely on oil that comes through the Persian Gulf, so soaring energy prices will slow economic growth.

"Australia is especially vulnerable, as it only has slightly more than one month of oil reserves," he added.

Australia's Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said the nation currently has energy reserves of "36 days' worth of petrol, 34 days' worth of diesel, and 32 days' worth of jet fuel".

Major impact

"Now, there will be challenges and difficulties, and of course, the major impact on Australia's petrol prices will always be international oil prices, which will be under real pressure," he said at a news conference on Tuesday.

Bowen urged the public not to resort to panic buying and called on fuel companies not to engage in price gouging, which means overcharging customers by sharply increasing prices.

Meanwhile, Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles confirmed that the Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, where the Australian military operates a regional headquarters, had been struck by Iranian missiles. The air base is about a half-hour drive from Dubai.

"We've got more than 100 personnel, actually, across the Middle East. Most of them are in the UAE where we've had an operational headquarters at Al Minhad for many, many years now," Marles told the media on Tuesday.

According to the Australian government, there are currently around 115,000 Australians in the Middle East.

xinxin@chinadaily.com.cn