E&OE
12 February 2009
Interview with Sky News
Subjects: Victorian bushfires, economic stimulus package, Israeli elections, Zimbabwe
JOURNALIST: Minister, good morning. I understand condolences and offers of help are continuing flowing in from overseas for the bushfire victims?
SMITH: Well we've frankly been inundated with expressions of sympathy, condolences, solidarity, goodwill, and it's also been accompanied by any number of offers of assistance, so a very difficult time for us, it's been very uplifting.
We try and pride ourselves on being a good international citizen, helping people and nations out when they need a helping hand. And that's been reciprocated in spades over the last few days, directed to the Prime Minister, directed to me, through our officials, and it's very warmly appreciated by Australia.
JOURNALIST: What sort of help has Australia accepted in terms of equipment and personnel from overseas?
SMITH: Well all of the offers have gone to the Emergency Management Authority and the Government of Victoria to assess, we have for example accepted help from New Zealand fire fighters, I understand some United States personnel will arrive next week to help, whether it's from our region or afar, lots of offers have come in.
Indonesia, for example, have indicated they'd like to help pay for the reconstruction of any schools that have been damaged or destroyed in the fire. That's largely in response to the fact that as a part of our development assistance in Indonesia, there is a program where we build or repair Indonesian schools.
So there are plenty of offers coming in, not all of them we need to take up, because we are, even in difficult times, a prosperous and well developed country.
But all of the offers are very greatly appreciated, and it does, I think, reflect our standing in the international community as a nation who responds well in a humanitarian crisis, and a nation who does its best to help others develop their own capacity.
JOURNALIST: Here in Canberra, politics seem a little bit irrelevant with so much tragedy still unfolding in Victoria, but of course today, we're looking forward to the Senate vote, and the Government's $42 billion stimulus package, what are the chances it'll go through?
SMITH: Well, we hope that it does, we think it's very important to the economy, and we hope that it's resolved successfully from our point of view, by late tonight or tomorrow, if the House is required to sit tomorrow.
That's been the backdrop in the course of the week, I think the Parliament has responded very, very well to the crisis we've seen in Victoria, and also the floods in Queensland. It's been a good process, I think, in terms of the Parliament showing its empathy with what's occurring out in the community.
The Senate today in a sense will get back to business, and we hope that the package is successfully piloted through the Senate, because it is essential to our economic wellbeing.
JOURNALIST: Well, essential for the Government to get this through is of course the support of the cross bench senators. Senator Fielding has said that his negotiations so far with the Government have been a joke, he said he found the whole process insulting, that's not a good sign, is it?
SMITH: Well, he'll no doubt continue to have discussions with Mr Swan and our other economic ministers, and we hope it comes to a successful conclusion in the course of today, or tomorrow.
JOURNALIST: Turning overseas, and Israel's elections, both of the major parties have claimed victory, the confusion surely can only complicate the peace process there?
SMITH: Well we have to wait now and see which government emerges, which new government emerges in Israel. There's a couple more days before the final counting occurs. The President, President Peres, then has a week or so to determine which of the political leaders he thinks can form a government.
But whatever government emerges, obviously Australia will work with closely, and whatever government emerges, we think the international community will expect and require that government to throw itself wholeheartedly into the peace process. It's absolutely essential that we get an enduring settlement in the Middle East.
JOURNALIST: Overnight Zimbabwe's Opposition Leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, was sworn in as Prime Minister, joining President Robert Mugabe in a unity government. Are you hopeful that President Mugabe means it this time, when he says he wants to work with the new Prime Minister?
SMITH: Well, we certainly congratulate Mr Tsvangirai, we welcome his appointment as Prime Minister. Our preference of course would be for Mr Mugabe to simply walk off the stage.
It does make some modest progress in terms of reflecting the will of the Zimbabwe people, but we obviously have grave reservations. We certainly hope that Mr Tsvangirai is given the opportunity to start rebuilding Zimbabwe's very terrible state, its economic and social circumstances. But the danger of course is that it becomes the modern day Joshua Nkomo, who Mr Mugabe saw off a couple of decades ago.
But we want to do what we can to help, and we're currently giving consideration to that, together with other countries who have shown interest in Zimbabwe for a long period of time - the United Kingdom, Canada, European Union members - and so we'll look carefully now at what we can do to help.
JOURNALIST: Foreign Minister Stephen Smith, thanks for your time.
SMITH: Thanks very much.
[Ends]
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