Speech Notes (Check Against Delivery)
Secretary's Annual Reception for the Diplomatic Corps
2 December, 2009
Acting Secretary Bird, thank you for that introduction.
I start by thanking you, Acting Secretary, for your leadership of the Department over recent months.
I also take this opportunity to pay tribute to the very strong foreign policy contribution made by former Secretary, Michael L'Estrange, in the four and a half years that Michael led the Department. I welcome Michael here this evening.
Excellencies, Parliamentary colleagues, distinguished guests,
It is a great pleasure to be here this evening.
Tomorrow, 3 December, will be exactly two years since the Government took office and I was sworn in as Minister for Foreign Affairs.
Some of you may recall that my very first speech as Foreign Minister was to this very gathering, the Secretary's Annual Christmas Reception for the Diplomatic Corps.
No more than a few hours after I was sworn in by his Excellency the Governor General, I arrived here to make my first speech.
I said then that at the heart of the Government's foreign policy approach lay the responsibility to protect, defend and enhance Australia's national security, to maximise our economic opportunities and to advance Australia's national interest across the range of international issues.
I spoke of the three pillars that underpin the Government's approach to foreign policy: our alliance with the United States, our membership of the United Nations and our strong engagement within Asia and the Pacific.
I spoke of the importance of dealing with other nations with civility, dignity and respect and upholding Australia's reputation as a good international citizen.
I spoke about my perspective as a Western Australian, and the essential need that Australia also look to our west across the Indian Ocean.
Two years on, I am pleased to say that the Government has made progress on the range of foreign policy fronts.
The Government's first act on coming to office was to ratify the Kyoto protocol.
That reflected two things: our engagement with the United Nations and our strong adherence to the view that climate change is one of the major challenges of our time and that it requires Governments across the world to take strong and effective action.
In our first year, the Government also delivered on our commitment to an Apology to the nation's stolen generation of indigenous children.
This year, we gave our support to the General Assembly's Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
Each of these actions has done much to both restore and enhance Australia's international standing.
The Government strongly believes that Australia should play a constructive role in addressing some of the great global challenges of our time.
This year, the declaration of the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation represents the most significant shift in global governance in decades.
Australia now has a permanent seat at the head table. This is a significant advancement of Australia's interests and our influence.
On climate change, we are committed to working with the international community to achieve real progress in Copenhagen later this month.
Climate change is not the only pressing global issue to which Australia is making a leading contribution.
The Government addressed the challenges of disarmament and non-proliferation by establishing the International Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament last year.
This Commission, co-chaired by former Foreign Ministers Gareth Evans and Yoriko Kawaguchi of Japan, will release its report later this month.
The Government is confident that the report will make a substantial contribution to the debate on non-proliferation and disarmament in the lead-up to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty Review Conference next year and encourage the growing international consensus on the need to curb the proliferation of nuclear weapons and secure progress towards nuclear disarmament.
The Government is strongly committed to the United Nations and to effective multilateral and regional engagement.
As you know, as an expression of that commitment, we are actively seeking a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the 2013-14 term.
We have also been working hard to enhance our engagement with a range of regional forums that Australia has regrettably historically neglected, including the African Union, the Gulf-Cooperation Council, the Rio Group of Latin American countries, the Caribbean Community, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Asia-Europe Meeting and the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation.
As last week showed, we also remain a committed member of the Commonwealth and I'm very pleased that my home city of Perth will host the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2011.
The Government has pursued strong engagement within our own region over the last two years.
This century we are seeing global economic, strategic and political influence shifting to the Asia-Pacific region.
That's why the Prime Minister has outlined his vision for an Asia Pacific community.
As we approach 2020, we all need to closely examine the regional architecture and consider how it might best be developed to serve the region's interests into this century.
None of the groupings in the current architecture is comprehensive in membership, scope or purpose. India is not a part of APEC. The United States is not part of the East Asia Summit.
At the meeting in Thailand of East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers and at APEC in Singapore, I found the discussion in the region of the Prime Minister's Asia Pacific community initiative to be very encouraging.
The Government is also proud to have placed Australia's relationships with our partners and friends in the Pacific on a much stronger footing.
In August, Australia chaired the Pacific Island Forum, the first time we had done so in 15 years.
At the meeting the Pacific leaders:
- agreed the Cairns Compact on Development Coordination
- issued a Call to Action on Climate Change
- agreed to commence negotiations on a new regional trade and economic agreement.
To this audience two years ago, I observed that Australia needed do more with India. It is a theme I have continued over the past two years.
Last month, in an historic announcement, Australia and India agreed to the elevation of our relationship to that of a strategic partnership. Prime Minister Rudd and Prime Minister Singh also signed a joint declaration on security cooperation.
As all of you know, the work of a diplomat is never done. Likewise, the Government will continue to work hard in the year ahead to deliver on our foreign policy priorities.
I acknowledge the good work done by all of you, the Diplomatic Corps in Australia.
In the pursuit of our policy goals, we have had the privilege of drawing on your collective experience and I have welcomed the opportunity to meet with many of you over the course of this year.
I wish you and your families all the best for the Christmas and holiday season and I look forward to our ongoing productive working relationship in the year ahead.
Thank you.