Is this a warning shot to the mullahs of Tehran?  Or is the U.S. quietly lining up its allies in preparation for military strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities – and therefore a potentially total war with the Islamic Republic?  News.com.au (the Australian branch of the Murdoch empire) reports:

The United States is reportedly prepared to bomb Iran's nuclear capability as early as next month – and Australia will have a role to play.

According to senior figures in the Turnbull Government, the US is almost ready to pull the trigger on sites related to Iran's nuclear program, in a move that would no doubt impact the wider region.

The unnamed sources told the ABC that Australian defence facilities would likely help identify targets in Iran, as would British intelligence agencies.

Pine Gap, the top-secret spy base in the Northern Territory, is considered crucial for its role in directing American spy satellites.

Sources said Australian agencies could potentially help isolate targets as part of our ongoing Five Eyes intelligence pact with the US, the UK, Canada and New Zealand – although they noted Canada and New Zealand would be unlikely to play a military role in the conflict.

The sources are all anonymous, of course.  And Australia's government has not been favorable toward a confrontation with Iran:

Australia has separated itself from rising tensions between the US and Iran, instead urging the Middle Eastern giant to take a peaceful role in the region.

"Australia is urging Iran to be a force for peace and stability in the region," Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told ABC radio yesterday.

"The relationship between the United States and Iran is a matter for them.

"What we are looking to do is to ensure that all parties embrace peaceful and stable principles to ensure that our region is safe."

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation indeed has the report mentioned above:

Senior figures in the Turnbull Government have told the ABC they believe the United States is prepared to bomb Iran's nuclear facilities, perhaps as early as next month, and that Australia is poised to help identify possible targets.

To be sure, tensions are rising.  A strike on Iran could have catastrophic consequences, unless the regime crumbles under a simultaneous uprising.

Is the U.S. trying to nudge Australia?

We are looking through the mirror, trying to understand the subterranean currents that might be behind this leak to the media halfway around the world.

Update: My colleague Rick Moran speculates that this could be scare-mongering by anti-Trump forces in Australia.  Given that the ABC (Australia's, not America's ABC) trends very left, this could be true.

Hat tip: John McMahon

Image via Pixabay.