Transcript: E&OE
14 August 2009
Interview: ABC2 TV, News Breakfast
Topics: Plane crash in Papua New Guinea and Afghanistan elections.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: Returning now to our top story, and that's the very difficult retrieval of the 13 people killed in the Kokoda plane crash.
We're joined now by the Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith. Minister, good morning; thanks for joining us.
STEPHEN SMITH: Good morning, Virginia.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: What news can you share with us this morning? We've heard that a fourth body has been pulled from the wreckage; what do you know?
STEPHEN SMITH: I've had that advice, as well. My advice is also that at this stage none of the bodies have been able to be retrieved from the site to either Kokoda or Port Moresby.
Obviously, the circumstances and the conditions are very difficult and, as I said to the house yesterday, we now have to, in a sense, brace ourselves for what will be potentially a painstaking and long process, much longer than we'd want for the families and much, obviously, longer than the families would want for themselves.
But in addition to the difficulties of extracting the bodies from the site in the inclement weather conditions, we'll then have the complex and difficult processes of formal identification.
We've also got three jurisdictions involved; Australia, Papua New Guinea and Japan, because we've got a Japanese citizen as well.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: Right.
STEPHEN SMITH: We're keeping the families constantly informed; but from their perspective, this will take a very long time. It always takes longer than one would wish or want.
JOE O'BRIEN: What have you heard about other trekkers who are now stranded up there because of this?
STEPHEN SMITH: I've seen that report, and the initial advice, or the advice I've got from our High Commission this morning is that they don't have anything which would verify or provide any basis for that.
We are, of course, proposing to check that. There's a Royal Australian Air Force Caribou plane which is scheduled to take off shortly from Port Moresby to Kokoda, and we'll have officials on board who can make inquiries to see whether that's the case.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: Well, that actually might clarify one thing, because that report said that the landing strip at Kokoda had been closed and wasn't being used; is that not the case?
STEPHEN SMITH: That's not my advice. What we do know is that PNG Airlines have suspended their flights…
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: Right.
STEPHEN SMITH: … from Port Moresby to Kokoda for a period of time. They haven't suspended their other flights - they fly throughout New Guinea and also fly to Cairns and Brisbane. But they have decided to suspend their own flight.
But, just on the suggestion, we're unsure from the suggestion whether it's 50 people allegedly stranded in Kokoda itself or along the track. We've made inquiries this morning through our High Commission and at this stage we say - we're saying there's no basis for that. But, obviously, we're checking it very carefully and we'll do that as quickly as we can with people in Kokoda itself, as quickly as possible.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: So at this stage you actually don't believe that there are any people stranded in Kokoda?
STEPHEN SMITH: Look, that's my understanding but given the surrounding circumstances…
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: We're just trying to clarify what we know this morning.
STEPHEN SMITH: Currently, we're saying we don't have that information, we don't see a basis for it, but given the general circumstances, we're, of course, doing everything we can to check that very quickly.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: I - just on this subject, before we move on to other matters, I just quickly want to ask you, there was some criticism around yesterday about the fact that the Australian Government has spent some money in the last few years on various issues around the Kokoda Track, soil erosion studies and the like; do you now wish that that money had instead been spent on important travel infrastructure?
STEPHEN SMITH: I think, you know, it's always very important in these instances to just calmly and carefully wait until all of the exhaustive investigations have been done. There will clearly be an inquiry into the crash, both done by the PNG relevant authorities. We've made it clear through our own aviation authorities and the safety transport bureau, that we're happy to be involved and associated with that; and I'm very confident that will occur.
So, let's have a look at the exhaustive investigation of the crash and then see what, if any, changes need to be made as a consequence of that.
What we have known for a long time is that flying planes in PNG is difficult, can be dangerous, because of the climatic conditions. And that's one of the things that aviators in PNG have always had to grapple with. But I'm not leaping to any conclusions. We have a Memorandum of Understanding now with PNG over the Kokoda Track and the infrastructure and the like.
But I think it's very important to deal with these matters in the priority in which they come, which was locating the plane, confirming the terrible consequence and now dealing with the families so that the families can get their loved ones back as quickly as possible - knowing that that process is physically difficult because of the terrain. But there'll also be just the complex procedures required for identification and then bringing their loved ones back to Australia.
JOE O'BRIEN: Just turning to Afghanistan now. We've got the elections on next week; how dangerous is the security situation going to be there over the next 10 days?
STEPHEN SMITH: Afghanistan is difficult and dangerous, and that's one of the reasons that we're there. We are working very closely in cooperation with the other United Nations-mandated international security force. We've got additional security forces in there for the purposes of the election.
JOE O'BRIEN: How many additional forces in there specifically for…
STEPHEN SMITH: One hundred and twenty. And when you include the 120 and the increase that we announced in March - April of this year, that takes our total complement, with those temporary 120, to about 1550.
But we're working very closely with other countries to provide that extra security for the election. We believe it's very important that that election is conducted in a manner in which the Afghanistan people have got as much poss… potential as possible to fully take part in an election process.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: The power struggle that clearly seems to be taking place between various Taliban figureheads at the moment, and the reports and the denials over who's been killed and who hasn't, does that represent for us, do you think, for the coalition forces in there, an opportunity or a danger?
STEPHEN SMITH: Well, in some respects, both. It's an opportunity for us because, clearly, they have lost some of their leadership, there's no doubt about that, as a result of the attacks by coalition forces on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. It's a danger also, in the sense that as previously subordinate Taliban commanders seek to gain prominence or leadership, that they will try things to display their prowess, which opens up the possibility of more adventurous attacks on the international force there.
JOE O'BRIEN: There's intense speculation that Stanley McChrystal is going to be asking the US to send in more troops. Would you be comfortable with any increase in Australian troop numbers there in the near future, or not?
STEPHEN SMITH: We've just responded formally in the last couple of months to the Riedel review and the official request from the United States to increase numbers, and I've just outlined that. We've also, very importantly, made a substantial civilian capacity-building, nation-building contribution as well, which is very important; as is the political realignment, political reconciliation process that we believe is important to go through, led by the Afghanistan Government.
But I think it's also very important to understand what General McChrystal is doing. He's been asked to do a review of, if you like, the status or the state of play after the election to enable people in the cold light of day to then make judgements about force allocations.
Now, whether any suggestion for further increase in American forces or increase in NATO forces, time will tell. But from our perspective, we're substantially the largest non-NATO contributor, we're in the top 10 so far as contributors are concerned. We're making a substantial contribution because we believe that it's in our national interest to be there because of the ever-present dangers of international terrorism; and we've seen the tragic consequences of that in Jakarta recently.
VIRGINIA TRIOLI: Minister Smith, good to have you on the program; thanks so much.
STEPHEN SMITH: Thanks, Virginia; thanks, Joe.
[Ends]
Media inquiries
Foreign Minister's office (02) 6277 7500