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Australia will make "the strongest possible representations" on behalf of Myuran Sukumaran but will not jeopardise its relationship with Indonesia, Prime Minister Tony Abbott has said.
Mr Abbott was in South Australia on Thursday when he was asked about the Australian Bali nine member, who is on death row in Bali and whose bid for clemency has been rejected by Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
A letter rejecting the clemency bid was hand-delivered to Bali's Kerobokan prison by an Indonesian government official on Wednesday.
"Australia opposes the death penalty. We oppose the death penalty for Australians at home and abroad," Mr Abbott said.
"We obviously respect the legal systems of other countries but where there is an attempt to impose the death penalty on an Australian, we make the strongest possible diplomatic representations.
"As Julie Bishop has indicated, that is happening now."
Mr Abbott was asked if Australia's relationship with Indonesia would change if the country executed Sukumaran and fellow Australian Bali nine member Andrew Chan.
The Prime Minister said the government was not going to jeopardise a "critically important" relationship.
"My profound hope is that these executions will not go ahead.
"What I'm not going to do, though, is jeopardise the relationship with Indonesia.
"That would be foolish to jeopardise the relationship with Indonesia and we believe that we can make the strongest possible representations on behalf of our citizens on death row in Indonesia while at the same time preserving a strong and constructive relationship."
Chan has not received a letter about his bid for clemency. Chan and Sukumaran have apologised for being involved in a conspiracy to import 8.2 kilograms of heroin from Bali to Australia in 2005. They were sentenced to death by firing squad in 2006.
