Media releases
2009
December
- Forced return of Lao Hmong, 29 December
- Australian Assistance to Fiji Floods, 20 December
- Australia elected to United Nations Peacebuilding Commission, 18 December
- Australia and Republic of Korea Sign Memorandum of Understanding on Development Cooperation, 16 December
- Visit to The Republic of Korea, 16 December
- New Chair of the Australia-India Council, 14 December
- Australia's Overseas Development Assistance partnership with Australia's NGOs, 14 December
- Humanitarian assistance to the Philippines, El Salvador and the Palestinian Territories, 14 December
- Further assistance for Zimbabwe, 14 December
- Visit to the Republic of Korea , 14 December
- International Human Rights Day, 10 December
- Governments of Australia, the Netherlands and New Zealand call for responsible behaviour in the Southern Ocean, 7 December
- Australia and the United Nations Population Fund strengthen cooperation, 4 December
- Journalism Award Fosters Indonesian-Australian Relationship, 3 December
- Australia becomes an Asian Partner for Cooperation of the OSCE, 3 December
November
- Release of Nigel Brennan, 26 November
- Australian engagement with CARICOM, 25 November.
- Australia provides practical support to end violence against women, 25 November.
- Visit to Cuba, 23 November.
- Humanitarian Assistance for Burma, 21 November.
- Commonwealth Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Trinidad and Tobago and visit to Cuba, 21 November.
- Diplomatic appointment: Ambassador to Afghanistan, 21 November.
- Appointment of EU high Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, 21 November.
- Support for Pakistan's internally displaced people, 21 November.
- Diplomatic Appointment - Consul-General in Guangzhou, 20 November.
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to Sweden, 20 November.
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to Ireland, 20 November.
- Australia committed to a mine-free world, 18 November.
- Diplomatic appointment: Ambassador to Spain, 18 November.
- Diplomatic appointment: High Commissioner to Malta, 18 November.
- Diplomatic appointment: Ambassador to Croatia, 18 November.
- $7 million to fight malaria, 16 November .
- Australia and New Zealand join forces to assist pandemic (H1N1) vaccine rollout in the Asia Pacific, 13 November.
- Australia supports trade and development in APEC, 12 November.
- Australia and Sri Lanka strengthen legal cooperation against people smuggling, 9 November.
- Joint Statement - Australia and Sri Lanka, 9 November.
- Visit to Sri Lanka and APEC in Singapore, 8 November.
- Exports up as China becomes Australia's biggest trading partner, 5 November .
October
- Australia to host the Regional Interfaith Dialogue in Perth, 30 October
- Joint Media Release - United Nations Disabilities Committee Chair, 28 October
- Australian Assistance to Samoa and Tonga - Joint Media Release with the Minister for Defence, 27 October
- Australia strengthens partnership with the World Food Programme, 26 October
- Australian Foreign Minister visits Padang, West Sumatra, 21 October
- Visit to India – Mumbai, 15 October
- Australian Foreign Minister visits Salaam Baalak Trust, 15 October
- Australian Foreign Minister Announces New Fellowship for Indian Media Professionals, 14 October
- Indian Winners of Australian Leadership Awards, 14 October
- Australian Foreign Minister announces Australia-India Science and Technology Research Award, 14 October
- Visit to stadiums for the 2010 Men's Hockey World Cup and Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games, 14 October
- Joint Statement: India-Australia Foreign Ministers Framework Dialogue, 13 October
- Australia and New Zealand support for tsunami recovery in Samoa, 11 October
- Australian assistance for Laos following Typhoon Ketsana, 11 October
- Indonesia earthquakes - recovery and reconstruction assistance, 11 October
- Visit to India, 11 October
- Visit to Sweden, 8 October
- Visit to Poland, 7 October
- Visit to the United Kingdom, 6 October
- Visit to the United Kingdom, Poland and Sweden, 4 October
- $1 Million Australian assistance for Vietnam, 3 October
- $1 Million Australian support for Tonga, 3 October
- Urgent food aid for the Philippines, 3 October
September
- Australian assistance for Samoa, 30 September
- Australia to help victims of Tropical Storm Ondoy, 29 September
- Visit to Washington DC, 28 September
- Australia supports international effort on food security, 26 September
- Australia supports interfaith dialogue, 25 September
- $2 million to advance the Responsibility to Protect principle, 25 September
- World must act on Nuclear Test Ban, 24 September
- Sixtieth anniversary of the UN Relief and Works Agency, 24 September
- Healthy Women, Healthy Children: Australia commits funds to save lives, 24 September
- Meeting with the Rio Group, 24 September
- Meeting with the Gulf Cooperation Council Troika, 23 September
- Australia-East Timor-Indonesia Trilateral Meeting, 22 September
- Establishment of diplomatic relations with Cape Verde, 22 September
- Trilateral Strategic Dialogue Ministerial Meeting - Joint statement by the United States, Japan and Australia, 21 September
- Australia supports United Nations Development Programme, 21 September
- Australia strengthens engagement with UNAIDS to halt the spread of HIV, 21 September
- Trilateral Strategic Dialogue Ministerial Meeting, 21 September
- Visit to the United Nations General Assembly and Washington, 20 September
- Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to the European Communities, Belgium and Luxembourg, Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and Special Representative to the World Health Organization, 17 September
- Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to the United States, 17 September
- Further Assistance to Zimbabwe on the Anniversary of the Global Political Agreement, 15 September
- $5 million to support resettlement of displaced persons in Sri Lanka, 14 September
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to the UAE, 14 September
- Visit to Perth by Mozambican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, 11 September
- Retirement of Duncan Kerr, 11 September
- Visit to Australia by Mozambican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, 10 September
- Global recession Impacting on Australia's Trade Performance, 3 September
- Africa DownUnder Mining Conference, 3 September
- Fiji's full suspension from the Commonwealth, 2 September
August
- Visit to Chile, 27 August
- Visit to Chile, 26 August
- Visit to Brazil, 25 August
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to Lebanon, 24 August
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to Germany, 24 August
- Diplomatic Appointment - Ambassador to Portugal, 24 August
- T.K. (Tom) Critchley AO CBE, 24 August
- Visit to Brazil and Chile, 24 August
- Listing of Al-Shabaab as a Terrorist Organisation, joint release with Attorney-General, 21 August
- World Humanitarian Day: A Day for Remembering Aid Workers, 19 August
- Further Support to Tongan Relief Effort, 18 August
- Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade, 13 August
- Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, 13 August
- Government Ratifies Protocol to Mark 60 years of the Geneva Conventions, 12 August. Joint release with Hon Robert McClelland MP and Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon John Faulkner.
- Reducing Violence Against Women in Melanesia and East Timor, Joint release with Tanya Plibersek MP, 11 August
- Aung San Suu Kyi, 11 August
- Death of Corazon Aquino, 5 August
July
- Singapore Australia Joint Ministerial Committee, 26 July
- Increased Support for Stronger Regional Economic Growth, 23 July
- Australia Supports Mekong Water Resource Management and Trade, (AusAID) 22 July
- Visit to Thailand for ASEAN Related and Asia-Pacific Regional Meetings, 21 July
- Australia Supports the Responsibility to Protect, 21 July
- Appointment of the new Chief Executive Officer for the ACIAR, 21 July
- Diplomatic appointment - Ambassador to Austria, 20 July
- Meeting with Hungarian Foreign Minister, 15 July
- Visit to Malta, 14 July
- Appointment of APEC Ambassador, 13 July
- Meeting with United Nations Official in Cyprus, 13 July
- Australia Implements New UN Sanctions Against North Korea, 12 July
- Participation in the Non-Aligned Movement Summit in Egypt and Travel to Malta,12 July
- UN Report on Global Effort Toward Achieving the MDGs, 10 July
- Incident in Indonesian Waters, 9 July
- Mr Stern Hu, 9 July
- Australia and Malaysia: New Directions for Cooperation, 7 July
- Visit to Malaysia, 5 July
- Appointment of Ambassador Yukiya Amano as IAEA Director General, 5 July
- Ambassador to Sweden, 3 July
- Humanitarian Relief for Conflict-Affected Communities in North-West Pakistan, 1 July
- Director General AusAID, 1 July
- Australia Supports the 20 August Afghan Elections, 1 July
June
- Australian Assistance for Palestinian People, 25 June, Joint Media Release with the Hon Julia Gillard MP, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Education, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Minister for Social Inclusion.
- Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, 19 June
- Australia and New Zealand launch the world's largest non-lethal whale research partnership, 18 June, Joint Media release with Australian Minister for the Environment, Heritage & the Arts, Peter Garrett; and New Zealand Minister for Foreign Affairs, Murray McCully.
- Visit to New Zealand, 17 June,
- Visit by Botswana Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, 17 June
- Appointment of Australian National Commission for UNESCO, 16 June
- Assistance to Refugees on the Thai-Burma Border, 16 June
- Australia Welcomes UN Security Council Response to North Korea's Nuclear Test, 15 June
- Visit to Australia by Rwandan Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, 15 June
- Australia's Response to Combat Piracy and Armed Robbery at Sea, 15 June. External link to website of the Hon Anthony Albanese, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.
- Visit to Australia by Kenyan Minister for Foreign Affairs, 12 June
- Australia to Join United Nations Anti-Piracy Fight, 12 June
- 19th Australia-Papua New Guinea Ministerial Forum, 10 June
- Australia Updates Autonomous Financial Sanctions for the Former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, 10 June
- Ambassador for People Smuggling Issues, 8 June
- Diplomatic Appointment - High Commissioner to India, 8 June
- 19th Australia-Papua New Guinea Ministerial Forum, 8 June
- Visit to Samoa, 4 June
- Visit to Tonga, 3 June
- Visit to Tonga and Samoa, 2 June,
- Australia Welcomes Agreement to Negotiate a Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty, 1 June
May
- Australia to Join the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Process, 28 May
- New Series Australian Passport, 28 May
- Australia Provides Further Support to Rebuild Zimbabwe, 25 May (AusAID)
- Visit to Australia by Tanzanian Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, 25 May
- Australia Takes Action Against Torture, 22 May
- Diplomatic appointment - Ambassador to Sweden, 21 May
- Humanitarian relief for displaced people in Pakistan, 20 May (AusAID)
- Australian Assistance to Somalia, 19 May (AusAID)
- Australia leading the region's fight against H1N1 Influenza 09, 19 May
- Foreign Affairs and Trade Portfolio - Budget 2009-10, 12 May
- Protecting Australians from the Risk of Nuclear Proliferation, 12 May
- Enhanced Pacific Engagement, 12 May
- 2009-10 International Development Assistance Budget, 12 May
- Joint Ministerial Statement, Australia-Thailand Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation, 8 May
- Visit to Australia by Thai Foreign Affairs Minister Mr Kasit Piromya for Inaugural Australia - Thailand Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation, 8 May
- Further Urgent Humanitarian Assistance for Sri Lanka, 8 May (AusAID)
- United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 7 May
- Visit to Australia by Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, 6 May
- Visit to Riyadh and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, 4 May
- Visit to Saudi Arabia, 3 May
- Visit to Australia by Japan Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone, 1 May
April
- Additional Humanitarian Assistance for Sri Lanka, 29 April
- Turkish Australian Cultural Centre Opens in Çanakkale, 24 April
- Diplomatic Appointment: High Commissioner to Pakistan, 24 April
- Visit to Gallipoli Peninsula, 22 April
- Situation in Sri Lanka, 22 April
- Diplomatic appointment - High Commissioner to Solomon Islands, 22 April
- Visit to Australia by the Estonian Foreign Minister, 20 April
- Durban Review Conference, 19 April
- Friends of Democratic Pakistan and Pakistan Donors' Conference, 16 April
- Assistance for Rohingya People Living in Burma, 15 April
- Regional Cooperation to Strengthen Borders, 14 April
- On World Health Day - A New Strategy To Tackle HIV In Our Region, 7 April
- 50th anniversary of Antarctic Treaty, 7 April
- AUSMIN 2009, 7 April
- Improving Lives of Landmine Survivors, 4 April
- Development Assistance for Afghanistan and Pakistan, 1 April
March
- International Conference on Afghanistan in The Hague, 30 March
- China: further assistance for earthquake reconstruction, 25 March
- $20 Million for Climate Change in the Pacific, with Senator Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change and Water, 23 March
- Visit to China, 20 March
- Visit to the United Arab Emirates, 20 March
- Australia gravely concerned at the worsening humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka, 20 March
- Australia Supports Future Leaders of the Asia-Pacific, 18 March
- Australia provides additional support for Afghanistan elections, 15 March
- Australia to help Zimbabwe move forward , 11 March
- Visit to Australia by Republic of Cyprus Foreign Minister Markos Kyprianou, 10 March
- Australian Government Committed to Maternal and Child Health in Developing Countries, 10 March
- Australia Celebrates International Women's Day and Increases Support to UNIFEM, 8 March
- Australia Supports UN Call for Further Mine Clearance Action in Afghanistan, 3 March
- Australian appointed inaugural rapporteur to the United Nations Disabilities Convention, 3 March
- Australia pledges $20 million to assist Gaza, 1 March
February
- Renewal of United Nations Mission Mandate in Timor‑Leste, 27 February
- Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, 25 February
- Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, 25 February
- Diplomatic Appointment: High Commissioner to New Zealand, 25 February
- Diplomatic Appointment: Ambassador to Chile, 24 February
- Diplomatic Appointment: Consul-General Los Angeles, 24 February
- Visit to Australia by Republic of Malta Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs The Hon Dr Tonio Borg, 23 February
- Australia provides funds for Human Rights, 23 February
- Visit by Malaysian Foreign Minister Rais Yatim, 23 February
- Australia and Indonesia: partners in a new era, 19 February
- Meeting with Foreign Minister Qureshi, 17 February
- Zimbabwe, 16 February
- Visit to Pakistan, 16 February
- 15th Meeting of the Australia International Cultural Council, 13 February
- Visit to Australia by East Timor Foreign Minister Zacarias da Costa, 10 February
- Visit to Australia by Republic of Portugal Foreign Minister Luís Amado, 10 February
- New Ambassador for climate change, 9 February
- Humanitarian Assistance for Sri Lanka, 5 February
- OECD praises Australia's overseas aid program, 4 February
- Diplomatic Appointment - High Commissioner to Kiribati, 4 February
January
- Australia provides humanitarian assistance to Kenya, 30 January
- Australia concerned at plight of civilians in northern Sri Lanka, 30 January
- Australia supports peace and justice in Sierra Leone, 29 January
- Visit to Ethiopian Humanitarian Assistance Programs, 28 January
- Australia to provide $5 million additional humanitarian assistance for Gaza, 27 January
- Visit to Ethiopia and the African Union, 27 January
- Visit to Australia by Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan, 22 January
- Diplomatic appointment - High Commissioner to Brunei, 22 January
- Diplomatic appointment - Ambassador to Nepal, 22 January
- Confirmation of United States Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, 22 January
- Foreign Minister Smith to hold talks with New Zealand counterpart, 20 January
- Visit to Australia by Netherlands Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen, 18 January
- Further Australian Assistance for Fiji Floods, 16 January
- Australia's response to the recent violence in Gaza and Southern Israel - $5 million in humanitarian assistance, 1 January (Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard)
Previous Media Releases
2008 - 2007
- Previous Media Releases from Foreign Minister Stephen Smith for the years 2008 and 2007.