Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has expressed her "exasperation" at having to use consular resources to assist nine Australian men who stripped down to Malaysian flag swimmers in at the F1 Grand Prix.
Ms Bishop told Sunrise it was "disappointing to see this kind of incident" and that government travel advice warned Australians to be aware of behavioural standards in countries like Malaysia.
"It is exasperating to see the diversion of resources and funds that have to be spent getting Australians out of trouble, particularly when that trouble is avoidable," she said.
"This will be a matter for the Malaysian legal system and Australians shouldn’t assume that the Australian government can interfere in the legal proceedings of another country any more than another country could interfere in our legal proceedings.
WATCH: Pyne staffer among Australians arrested in Malaysia after stripping
"It’s always disappointing to see this kind of incident and it’s no excuse to say, ‘this would just be seen as boisterous behavior or a minor matter in Australia'."
Ms Bishop said Australians needed to be aware that they were subject to the laws of the country they were visiting and their actions could carry different implications.
Malaysian prosecutors are soon to decide whether to charge nine Australians for stripping down to budgie smugglers at the Grand Prix, police say.
Jack Walker, an adviser to the Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne, was among the men arrested after they allegedly drunkenly displayed their Malaysian flag-themed swimwear in celebration of Australian Daniel Ricciardo's win in Sepang on Sunday.
The deputy head of Selangor district police, Superintendent Rusdi Mohd Isa, told AAP on Wednesday that prosecutors were holding a morning meeting to decide whether to charge the group.
"They (the DPP) have not decided whether to charge," Supt Rusdi said.
Sepang assistant police commissioner Abdul Aziz Ali has previously told AAP he saw "no problem" in charging the group with an "intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace" or public indecency.
"They bought the underwear from Australia. They had the intention of doing that (stripping down) at the very beginning."
That the act was allegedly premeditated was echoed by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, who told the Nine Network she did not know if the group's actions would just be seen as a "lapse of judgment".
"It was clearly premeditated. They were wearing the budgie smugglers and had bought them in Australia."
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said the men's families have travelled to Malaysia and reminded Australians to respect the laws of the country they were in.
The men, who are being held at Sepang District Police office, are understood to have appointed counsel to represent them.
Nine Australians, including a government adviser, have been arrested in Malaysia (AAP) Source: AAP
It's not the first time foreigners have gotten in trouble in Malaysia for baring flesh.
In June last year, AFP reported that four tourists, including a British woman, were arrested after images of them undressing at the top of Mount Kinabalu on the island of Borneo went viral.
They were sentenced to three days in jail, fined 5000 Malaysian ringgit ($A1580) and deported.
With AAP.
