E&OE
6 November 2008
Interview - Matthew Abraham and David Bevan - ABC, Adelaide
Subject: US election
MATTHEW ABRAHAM: Stephen Smith is the Foreign Affairs Minister in the Rudd Government. He joins us now. Stephen Smith, good morning.
STEPHEN SMITH: Good morning, how are you?
ABRAHAM: Stephen Smith, we've asked you to come on for a response to how Australia now positions itself with new leadership in America.
SMITH: I think the first two issues that we'll press upon the new Administration, and I'm not expecting any difficulty, I think it will be an open door, is firstly the ongoing importance of the alliance between Australia and the United States. It's served both countries well for over 50 years. It transcends governments here, Labor or Liberal, or administrations in the United States, Democrat or Republican. So once we get through the initial getting to know the new counterparts, the new Secretary of State, the Defense Secretary, so far as Joel Fitzgibbon's concerned, the ongoing business or day-to-day running of the alliance will continue and that's an unambiguously good thing in Australia's national interest.
The second point we'll make to the new Administration will be the absolute importance of ongoing United States engagement in the Asia Pacific. This is, on all the evidence, the century of the Asia-Pacific, the rise of China, the rise of India, the rise of the ASEAN economies combined and it's absolutely essential in Australia's interest and in the Asia-Pacific's interest that the United States is actively engaged. That's also, we think, in the international community's interest. And coincidentally yesterday in Perth, where I still am, I had one of the members of the standing committee of the Chinese Communist Party Politburo, Mr Zhou, who's effectively about number nine in the hierarchy in China and discussed with him the importance of a positive and constructive US-China relationship. So active engagement in the Asia Pacific is very important, very essential. And then there's the raft of difficult issues which the new Administration will be faced with in which Australia has an interest, whether it's Afghanistan or Iran or the difficult problems of climate change or global financial crisis.
DAVID BEVAN: Stephen Smith, are you glad Barack Obama won the presidency?
SMITH: I think it's a deeply historical significant event and I think that's why there's so much hope and optimism around. I mean, the Australian Government would have worked happily with a McCain Administration, an Obama Administration, just as we've been working positively and constructively with the Bush Administration.
BEVAN: So it's makes no…
SMITH: Bear in mind…
BEVAN: Makes no difference who's running the place?
SMITH: Well, it's not that it makes no difference, it's just our relationship is a nation to nation, not a government to government relationship, more importantly it's a nation to nation relationship so we work with whoever the democratic processes throw up. And I'll make this point, we've been working positively with the Bush Administration and that will continue until 20 January because you don't have a caretaker role, you have a quite well established transitional arrangement in the United States.
BEVAN: But I think it's fair to say that there's been - across the globe this has been welcomed for various reasons and you describe it as historic and you welcomed it but are you, Stephen Smith, as Foreign Affairs Minister, personally happy to see that Barack Obama won the presidency?
SMITH: I'm personally very pleased to see that we have unfolding the historical significance of an African American President, that we have a black American President. I mean, it does show that race, you know, that race in the end doesn't matter, that race isn't something that should transcend other issues. We've had, for example, in the United States for the last eight years, an African American Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell. But the election of a President is deeply significant. And any new administration, whether it's government in Australia or a new presidential administration in the United States, brings with it the chance of a fresh approach or a fresh application to difficult issues or difficult problems so the combination of a new administration.
Plus the deep historical significance of it does give the real chance for what I describe as brand-America to present itself, you know, in an entirely new, modern and different formulation. That's clearly been seen as receptive throughout the international community and that's obviously a good thing because the active engagement of the United States, not just in the Asia-Pacific but in the international community generally, is not just in Australia's interest, I think it's in the globe's interest.
ABRAHAM: Barack Obama in his victory speech referred to the rebuilding of alliances. Do you think that the world potentially will be a safer place?
SMITH: I think he also drew attention to some of the very serious problems he's got, not in the peace and security area but global financial crisis, climate change, difficult domestic economic problems and, on top of that, peace and security or war problems in Iraq, Afghanistan. We're going to have a series of very difficult international community problems bearing down on us next year. This time next year, for example, I think that the most pressing issue may well be Iran's nuclear activities. But I think the point that the President-elect was making is that with a new Administration you have the chance, in a sense, for a fresh start to old problems so you can have a new dialogue, you can engage at a different level.
We've seen that in our own way in Australia where a number of relationships that we inherited have been improved because of a change of Government here and not just because it was a Rudd Labor Government but the change of government gave the opportunity for a fresh start in a relationship and that's what I think Senator Obama is referring to there, in terms of renewing or refreshing alliances or relationships.
ABRAHAM: Your predecessor, Alexander Downer, with the Howard Government, in the Advertiser this morning says what's in it for us, effectively. We'll have to work very hard to get him, Barack Obama, to do things we want and he gives some examples. Mr Obama is a trade protectionist, we need free trade. He's a fan of subsidies. We don't need that. He'll have to deal with Iraq and Afghanistan and finally we'll have to get him to think about Asia. So far he's not shown much interest. What's your response on those - those four key areas just quickly?
SMITH: Well, a number of comments. Firstly, whilst a protectionist or a less free trade demeanour is attached to the Democrat Party and the Democrats, I'm not necessarily sure or convinced that that applies to Obama himself. But irrespective of that Australia will continue, the Government will continue to argue very strongly that access to markets, that openness is absolutely essential, particularly at a time of difficult international economic circumstances. Now is not the time to retreat to protectionism so we will continue to mount that case internationally as we have done.
So far as Afghanistan is concerned, we welcome very much the commitment that the President-elect gave in the course of the election campaign which was an enhanced commitment to Afghanistan, not just on the military or peace and security side but also on the civilian capacity building side. We've got to put the Afghan people in the position where they can manage their own affairs.
And the third area, I think the emerging international consensus with which Australia strongly agrees is the Karzai Government or the Afghanistan Government has to enter into a political dialogue with other political players in Afghanistan and come to a political settlement.
So the solution in Afghanistan is not just a military solution or a peace and security solution, it involves all of those three elements and that's certainly reflected by the comments that the President-elect has been making.
And so far as Asia is concerned, I haven't read the article but I'm not quite sure I share Alexander's pessimism. Obama does have a personal association with Indonesia so it may well be that he pays attention to Indonesia which would be an unambiguously good thing.
In the past American administrations have, in a sense, relied to some extent on Australia's relationship or Australia's view of Indonesia and the active engagement of a President who had some personal history in Indonesia, in Indonesia itself, would be an unambiguously good thing. I don't read too much…
ABRAHAM: You don't think would - you don't think that would diminish our role?
SMITH: No, I think Australia's role in the Asia-Pacific is seen as very important by the United States and when I say that I don't just restrict that to Republicans or Democrats. The, if you like, foreign policy elite in the United States agrees on a number of things. One is the importance of the Alliance and the second is the importance of activity in the Asia Pacific and Australia supports and encourages both those things.
So I don't do a checklist on the basis of how many times Australia was mentioned in this article or that article. When the President comes to office, he'll have a whole range of difficult issues to deal with and engagement in and with the Asia Pacific will be one of the things that he has to address.
There'll be a whole series of difficult issues and problems. I've mentioned Iran. The other issue which he will inherit will be trying to make progress in the Middle-East in Palestine to get together a resolution, an enduring peace settlement between Israel and the Palestinian territories. And there's no doubt that on that issue, for example - I was in Israel recently - that the Israeli and the Palestinian leadership are essentially waiting for the next Administration to try and bring some renewed focus in that area.
ABRAHAM: Stephen Smith, Foreign Affairs Minister, do you expect the controversy over the alleged conversation between Prime Minister Rudd and George W Bush to now recede?
SMITH: Well, this is something that I must confess I haven't given the same prominence to that some commentators or reporters have. I mean, you have an alleged comment in a conversation which the White House said wasn't correct on an important fact, which the Prime Minister's office said wasn't important on an important fact, which the Prime Minister himself said wasn't correct on an important fact…
ABRAHAM: But it came from somewhere. Minister, it came from somewhere and…
SMITH: Well…
ABRAHAM: The first time it came from Canberra, it came from somebody close to the Prime Minister.
SMITH: Well, on the basis of what I've seen, the first place I saw it was The Australian newspaper but leave that to one side.
ABRAHAM: They don't make stuff up.
SMITH: There are two fundamental things here. Firstly a report which both sides say was wrong, secondly, let's go to the substantive issues here. It's an unambiguously good thing that President Bush, President Sarkozy, wearing his European Union cap, and President Barroso from the European Union effectively nominated or chose the G20 as being the international vehicle to deal with the global financial crisis. That's a good institution and the fact that Australia is in it is a very, very productive and good thing from our point of view and from our long term perspective.
Secondly, both sides have said this is not something that is going to disturb our relationship. The US Ambassador said that yesterday and it's one of those things which comes along from time to time, it doesn't disturb the fundamental relationship between the two administrations.
BEVAN: Well, you'd want to be a bit careful though, what you're saying to Kevin Rudd, if this story is true, wouldn't you? Because if you're a world leader you wouldn't want…
SMITH: Well, the point I'm making is that both sides have said, on the fact as alleged that President Bush didn't know what the G20 was, both sides say that wasn't said and was wrong and, of course, when you look at it in its substantive framework…
ABRAHAM: I wonder what he did say.
SMITH: The whole conversation was about the G20.
ABRAHAM: I wonder what he did say.
SMITH: Well, I wasn't in the room so I don't know and…
ABRAHAM: You haven't discussed it with the PM, saying what did he say if he didn't say he didn't know what the G20 was? What caused such merriment, after all?
SMITH: I haven't discussed it with the PM because (a) I don't think there's a need to and (b) the White House has said it wasn't right, the Prime Minister's office and the Prime Minister have said it wasn't right. Neither side is saying this is something which we regard as getting in the way of, in the first instance, a positive and constructive relationship between the Rudd Government and the current US Administration, the Bush Administration, and it certainly not going to be an issue of any relevance to the Obama-Biden Administration from 20 January. It's one of those pieces which come along from time to time which frankly, in the great scheme of things, doesn't matter a great deal.
ABRAHAM: But you're saying the fact that we're going to get new Administration will help put this in the past.
SMITH: Well, it's already in the past. The point I'm making is you've had the US Ambassador the other day and yesterday saying it's not an issue. You've had both sides saying the actual reporting was wrong. Now, we have a very positive and constructive relationship with the Bush Administration, as we should and on the particular, if you like, on the key issue where there was a policy or a political disagreement, the withdrawal of our troops from Iraq, that was handled with the US, with the Bush administration in a very positive and constructive way.
ABRAHAM: Minister, thank you so much for joining us here.
SMITH: Thanks, Matthew, thanks, David.
[Ends]
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