Interview - NewsHour with Jim Middleton, Australia Network

Subjects: Zimbabwe, Fuel & Food Prices, Jose Ramos Horta, Pacific Labour Mobility, North Korea.

JIM MIDDLETON: Minister, thanks very much for your time.

STEPHEN SMITH: A pleasure, Jim.

MIDDLETON: You've just had a meeting with US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice. Did you discuss Zimbabwe, and what did she say?

SMITH: Well, we certainly did discuss Zimbabwe. We're both very concerned, we both believe that Mr Mugabe has no legitimacy, no electoral or democratic legitimacy, we certainly don't believe that there should be a sham second-round run-off with one candidate on Friday, and both wanting the African Union and the Southern African Development Community States, to be putting maximum pressure on Mr Mugabe, and certainly the Australian view is, the best thing that could happen here is for Mr Mugabe to simply walk off the stage.

MIDDLETON: How disappointed have you been at the performance of South African President, Thabo Mbeki, who probably has the greatest potential leverage of anyone?

SMITH: Well, I've said during the week that it's appropriate in my view for South Africa to now start being robust, as we've seen in recent days, from other important African Union States, Zambia and Tanzania, for example, who respectively chair the African Union, and the Southern African Development Community States, both their presidents, President Kikwete and President Mwanawasa have been very robust about expressing their views.

The South African approach has been described as one of quiet diplomacy, we don't think this is a time for quiet diplomacy, we think it's a time for robust pressure on a brutal regime, and in the last couple of days, we have seen, I think across the board, much more robust activity from the African Union and the Southern African Development Community States generally, and we want that to continue, because the primary obligation here in terms of trying to get a democratic outcome, does rest on Zimbabwe's neighbours.

Some have been robust all along, and some are now coming to the fore, and that's a good thing, and we welcome those developments, just as we welcome for the first time a discussion before the Security Council, and welcome the very strong statement issued by the Security Council in the last couple of days.

MIDDLETON: Australian Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, has said that the G8 Summit is the venue for addressing the question of the high price of fuel, but there really is no short term solution, is there?

SMITH: Well, we have a view that greater production and getting more supply of oil into the marketplace, will help, but just as in the food security area, there are long term policy solutions that we've got to be having a conversation about in the international community, having a long term conversation.

So no, there's no magic or instant solution, greater supply will help, but a longer term approach, looking not just at the use of oil, but other forms of energy, all these things are now, I think, very much in the fore of the international community's mind, as we see increasing fuel prices putting pressure on fertiliser prices, putting pressure on transport prices, and that of itself is putting pressure on food prices, and causing the difficulty we see in the food area, which is one of the reasons why in the last couple of weeks I attended the Food and Agricultural Organisation's Food Security Conference, sponsored by the United Nations Secretary General in Rome a few weeks ago.

MIDDLETON: Australia's been calling for an end, or at least for a reduction in government fuel subsidies, that might be all well and good for Australia, but it's not likely to help other countries within the region where rising oil prices have led to demonstrations and protests, when both the issues of fuel prices and energy security and food prices and food security, do cause difficulties for developing and developed nations.

SMITH: One of the things that I did have a conversation with the Secretary of State about was the forthcoming World Trade Organisation, the WTO, Doha Round, because in both those areas we do see that the world's response has to be not one of protectionism or putting up barriers, but one of further trade liberalisation, further engagement, further trade.

So I did make the point to the Secretary of State that Australia is placing a lot of emphasis on a successful Doha Round in the WTO, and we think that will help. This is not a time, because the world may be under pressure in terms of fuel or food, to retreat to protectionism, that's a point I made very strongly to the Secretary of State, and a point that I'll be making to my other foreign ministerial colleagues.

MIDDLETON: Turning to another subject, news is emerging that East Timorese President, Jose Ramos Horta is considering whether to become UN Human Rights Commissioner. Should he stay, or should he move to this new post?

SMITH: Well, Australia's view of course is that it'll be a matter for him, and a matter for the United Nations.

MIDDLETON: Would you miss him, would Australia miss him as President?

SMITH: Well, I don't think we should be talking or thinking in terms of President Ramos Horta having walked off the East Timorese stage. I'm obviously a fair way away, but the advice I have is that the President himself is saying that even if an offer does come, that he's unsure that he would accept it.

What I can say is this, Australia has the highest regard for Ramos Horta, the highest regard, and we were shocked when the assassination attempt occurred. He has done a lot for his nation, and of course, if he moved on to a different capacity, that would be a loss to his nation, but he would also make a substantial contribution in the area that you're referring to, as United Nations Human Rights Activist.

So it's a matter for him, what I can say is that if the United Nations asked him to do the job, and he accepts, he would have our 110 per cent support, we regard him very, very highly.

MIDDLETON: Earlier this week I was speaking to the President, and he told me he was seeking access for East Timorese access to any Australian guest worker scheme, is that a possibility?

SMITH: Well, as you know, we are in conversation with the Pacific Island Forum Nation States, we've indicated that we're looking very closely at the New Zealand pilot program, and we hope to be in a position at the Pacific Island Leaders' Forum in Niue in August, to indicate what we're proposing to do.

But we are having a very careful look at the New Zealand pilot program. In the first instance, our view if you like, or our ambit, is in the Pacific, once we've made a decision about what we might do in terms of that, then we'll give further consideration to East Timor. We know that labour mobility and a labour mobility program with Australia, and indeed with New Zealand is of considerable interest to nationals in the Pacific, and also to East Timor.

We're well aware of that interest, what we're doing is having a very careful look at the New Zealand exercise, to see whether we can adopt or adapt that, there are a range of policy complexities which we're carefully going through, but we hope to be in a position to announce our decision either in the run-up to, or at the Niue Pacific Island Leaders' Forum in August.

MIDDLETON: One final issue, North Korea's making its long-awaited declaration on its nuclear activities, is this the breakthrough that it seems?

SMITH: Well, I think we'll have to wait and see, I did have a conversation with the Secretary of State about this, Australia has been paying very keen attention to the so-called six party talks, for a couple of reasons.

One, we do want to see the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula resolved, and resolved satisfactorily, and we're watching that very carefully, but we've also made the point that if there is some success on the nuclear issue, then there is a chance that the six party talks may merge into a more general, regional security or strategic arrangement.

We've made it very clear that we see Australia playing a role in that, we see that very much as being in our national and regional interest. North Asia is very important to Australia's economic and strategic interest, so I made that point again to the Secretary of State.

But we are expecting in the very near future, a matter of hours rather than days, a declaration from North Korea, and we'll obviously pay very careful attention to that, to see whether it satisfies the concern of its neighbours and the concern of the international community, that it disavows its nuclear program.

MIDDLETON: Stephen Smith, thanks very much for joining us on Newshour.

SMITH: Thanks very much Jim. Thank you.

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