Threats against political leaders should always be taken seriously, says Prime Minister Anthony Albanese amid calls for heightened vigilance following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.
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The safety of elected officials is always under review, particularly after the shooting at the former US president's rally, he said on Wednesday.
"It is a dangerous world in which we live ... we are seeing an increased number of direct threats to MPs and to MPs' families and we need to make sure we're vigilant about it," he told reporters in Brisbane.
"We need to take it seriously and not just dismiss it."
Former prime minister Tony Abbott said more attention should be placed on ensuring events that led to the assassination attempt on Mr Trump don't happen in Australia.
Although Australia was not suffering from the same divisions evident in US society, people needed to be on alert, he said.
"We don't have a gun culture, we don't have a history of political violence, we don't at this point in time, thank God, have the fragmentation and polarisation that sadly exists in America to quite the same extent," Mr Abbott told ABC Radio.
"Can you rule these things out? Of course not."
Former coalition home affairs minister Karen Andrews warned it was only a matter of time before an attempt was made on the life of an Australian politician.
"Parliamentarians are very visible and alarm bells are ringing," she told News Corp.
Ms Andrews called for constant security reviews for politicians.
The shooting of Mr Trump in Pennsylvania came just days before he formally received the Republican Party's nomination as its 2024 election candidate.
On the first day of the convention he announced as his pick for vice-president, Ohio senator JD Vance, who had come under fire for speaking against using US funds for the war in Ukraine against Russia.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said while western nations should stand up to Russian aggression, he congratulated Mr Vance on his appointment.
"We work very closely with our counterparts in the United States and we'll continue to do that," he said.
"We believe very strongly that support should be provided to Ukraine, because innocent men, women and children are being slaughtered there by President Putin.
"The world shouldn't take its eyes away from what's happening in Ukraine."
Mr Vance's inclusion on the Republican ticket would benefit Mr Trump, Mr Abbott said, though he disagreed with the vice-presidential hopeful's comments on Ukraine.
"He will strengthen the Republican ticket and I think if he becomes the vice president, has the potential to do an outstanding job," he said.
"(Vance) has said some things on Ukraine, which I would respectfully disagree with. I can't believe that Donald Trump would want to begin his presidency by handing a victory to the Russian dictator."
Australian Associated Press
