Transcript E&OE
11 October 2009
Press Conference
Subjects: Visit to India; assistance for Samoa, Indonesia and Laos.
STEPHEN SMITH: Tomorrow morning I leave for India. This will be my second visit to India as Foreign Minister. In New Delhi I will conduct the Australia-India Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue. This is a dialogue that we now hold on an annual basis and we cover the range of bilateral, regional and international issues of interest and concern to Australia and India.
India of course is a country that Australia wants to take to the front line of its bilateral relationships, and we're working very hard to do that. My visit to India will be the ninth visit by an Australian Minister to India since the beginning of 2008, and in return we've seen ten visits by Indian Ministers to Australia during that period of time. This reflects the enhanced high-level engagement that we're having with India.
The last Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue was held in Australia in 2008. On that occasion with the former Foreign Minister, Mukherjee. External Affairs Minister Krishna, of course, came to Australia in August to take part in the Pacific Islands Forum, post-forum dialogue, and I met him in Australia on that occasion.
There are a range of important aspects to my visit. India, of course, is now Australia's fifth largest export market and on track to become, over the next decade, our third largest export market. So in addition to my visit to New Delhi, I will also visit Mumbai, which is of course the commercial and business centre of India.
In Mumbai, in addition to meeting with Australian and Indian business people, and the Reserve Bank of India, I will also take part in a commemoration service for the lives lost in the terrible attacks on the hotels in Mumbai late last year, where of course two Australians also died in those attacks.
India, of course, and Australia work very closely in the G20, both members of the G20, and have been working closely in that context and also working very closely on climate change in the run up to Copenhagen. India, of course, also makes a substantial civilian and capacity-building contribution in Afghanistan and I take this opportunity of condemning the terrible terrorist attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul, in the course of the week.
India hosts the Commonwealth Games next year, and I'll be taking the opportunity in New Delhi to inspect some Commonwealth Games facilities, which is an important event so far as India is concerned next year.
I'm also taking the opportunity today of making a range of announcements so far as Australia's assistance to our friends and partners in the Asia-Pacific who have been ravaged by natural disasters in recent times.
Can I firstly indicate that so far as Indonesia is concerned, which has been the subject of earthquakes recently, both in Sumatra in Padang, but also in September in West Java, can I indicate today that Australia will make a contribution of seventeen million dollars for recovery and reconstruction, twelve million dollars to Sumatra and five million dollars to Java. This is in addition to any assistance that we have provided in the emergency rescue and relief phase.
Of the twelve million dollars to Sumatra, ten million dollars will go to the Government of Indonesia for the purposes of repairing or rebuilding schools and public health facilities. One million dollars will go to the Indonesian reconstruction trust fund and just over one million dollars will go to Australian NGOs, non-Government organisations, who are active in Indonesia, and working on the ground to assist.
Five million dollars will go to the rebuilding of schools in West Java. Schools are a feature of the program because as part of our general development assistance to Indonesia we are part way through a major basic education program where Australia is contributing to the repair, rebuilding or construction of some 2,000 primary schools.
So a significant contribution to the recovery and reconstruction in both Sumatra and Java, recently ravaged by earthquakes, and the focus on the rebuilding of public facilities, schools, hospitals and health facilities, but also assistance to Australian NGOs active in Indonesia, and also a direct contribution to the Indonesian Reconstruction trust fund.
Can I also announce today that so far as recovery and reconstruction in Samoa is concerned, Australia and New Zealand jointly announcing today a ten million dollar joint Australian-New Zealand contribution for recovery and reconstruction in Samoa. Australia and New Zealand have been working very closely in emergency rescue and relief operations in Samoa following the tsunami, but as we now move to the recovery and reconstruction phase. Jointly today with Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully, we're announcing a ten million Australian dollar contribution to the Government of Samoa for recovery and reconstruction purposes.
Can I also indicate that Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance Bob McMullan will leave Australia today to visit both Tonga and Samoa to inspect both damage done in Samoa and also to discuss with the Tongan Government efforts to provide assistance to the remote part of Tonga, the Tua group of islands, which were also affected by the Tsunami. And we've previously announced a million dollar contribution to Tonga jointly with France and New Zealand to assist in that respect. And Mr McMullan will visit, as I say, both Tonga and Samoa and hold discussions with both Governments.
Finally, can I announce today a one million dollar contribution to Laos following on from the devastation wreaked in Laos by Typhoon Ketsana recently. Laos has suffered both flooding, which has inundated rice crops, displacement of people and loss of life, and the million dollar contribution will be delivered by Australian NGOs who are also active on the ground in Laos.
This contribution to Laos, a million dollar contribution to Laos, follows on from a three million dollar contribution to the Philippines, and a one million dollar contribution to Vietnam, which have both also been the subject of devastation by Typhoon Ketsana in recent times.
So a significant and substantial contribution by Australia to friends and partners adversely affected by natural disasters in the region. This reflects not just Australia's desire to be a good international citizen, but also the leadership role that Australia, together with New Zealand, takes in development assistance matters in the Pacific in particular, but also, in Australia's case, in South-East Asia.
Finally can I just make some remarks about the terrible terrorist attack in Rawalpindi and the hostage taking. This very much underlines the gravity of the threat that Pakistan faces. It very much reinforces Australia's desire to be of assistance to Pakistan at this time. At the United Nations General Assembly recently, at the Friends of the Democratic Pakistan Leaders' meeting, the Prime Minister and I announced additional assistance to Pakistan.
We of course condemn the hostage taking, the killing of hostages, and the terrorist attack. We're not in a position at this stage to confirm precise details, but you might be aware that a Pakistan Government official has indicated that all of the terrorists have either been killed or captured, but there have terribly been lives lost so far as hostages are concerned.
So we condemn that and send our condolences to the Government and the people of Pakistan. I'm happy to respond to your questions to those or other issues.
JOURNALIST: Has the Department upgraded its level of warning for people travelling to Pakistan?
STEPHEN SMITH: No but in accordance with the normal course of events, I'm sure that the travel advice will be updated in terms of its factual description to refer to the attack in Rawalpindi.
JOURNALIST: In terms of your visit to India, you referred to the Mumbai bombings a year ago, we've got the Australian cricket team there later this month. Are you confident that they'll be secure and safe?
STEPHEN SMITH: As you'd expect, appropriate security precautions have been taken for my visit and the Australian Government has been working very closely with Cricket Australia in recent times in discussions about security matters, making available to Cricket Australia all of the relevant travel and other advice. That will also occur on this occasion. But of course, just as my travel is a matter for my discretion, so that's a matter for the exercise of Cricket Australia's discretion. But we have not just in the case of South Asia, but generally been working very closely with Cricket Australia in recent times, exchanging information and advice so far as these matters are concerned.
JOURNALIST: And what about the Indian authorities with regard to upgrading their, or bettering, their security with the Commonwealth Games coming up?
STEPHEN SMITH: As I indicate in my release, in addition to having the Foreign Ministers' Framework Dialogue, I'll be meeting with other Indian Ministers and officials. One of those will be the Home Affairs Minister. Part of that conversation will be planning, including security planning, for the Commonwealth Games.
This is, of course, a matter where Australia wants to, and is, working closely in cooperation with India as other Commonwealth countries are, but clearly this is a matter which India has very high on its list. It wants to have a successful Commonwealth Games; we certainly want that for India as well. But certainly appropriate security arrangements is something that the Indian Government has in hand and is working closely on and in discussion with other Commonwealth countries about those matters.
JOURNALIST: And what about the student violence (inaudible) is that still an issue?
STEPHEN SMITH: I'm sure I'll have discussions about Indian students in Australia with my counterpart External Affairs Minister Krishna. We spoke about these matters when he came to Cairns for the Pacific Islands Forum, post-forum dialogue and Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, Minister for Education was also in India recently. So we've been working very hard with the Indian Government and the Indian authorities and also making the point to the Indian people that we condemn absolutely any isolated attacks against students in Australia, whether they are Indians or from other countries.
We pride ourselves on being a safe country and generally that is true and we've worked very hard with State authorities, particularly the Police authorities to ensure that the prospect of any such attacks are minimised.
So I expect I'll have discussions with External Affairs Minister Krishna about these matters and we'll continue to make the points that we've been making. We of course condemn unreservedly any attack or any display of violence in Australia by anyone against visitors or travellers to our country. But we've also been working very hard both with immigration and education authorities to ensure that there is rigour in the arrangements so far as Indian students coming to Australia is concerned.
JOURNALIST: With regard to the recovery and reconstruction money that is going to these countries, how much of that, does any of that, what amount of that money has to be paid back by these countries?
STEPHEN SMITH: It's not a matter of paying back. This is part of our role as a leader, so far as development assistance is concerned in our region.
We have substantial development assistance programs both in the Pacific and in South-East Asia, in Asia. But we also have substantial humanitarian and disaster-assistance programs and of course natural disasters are, whilst one makes calculations for the prospect, they're never known or anticipated until they occur and when they occur. Whether its Typhoon Ketsana, whether its a tsunami, or whether its earthquakes, we do our bit to show that Australia is a good international citizen and we do our bit to help our friends and partners in the region. So there's no notion of repaying. Repayment for Australia is that we hold ourselves up as a good friend of these countries in difficulty. And I think Australians very much want Australia, which is a well developed and prosperous nation, to do its bit for other countries who aren't as well off as we are, particularly in times of very serious adversity.
JOURNALIST: And just on another issue, we've heard from Julie Bishop on her thoughts on Barrack Obama getting the Nobel Peace Prize, what are your thoughts?
STEPHEN SMITH: We of course congratulate the President. It's a high honour; it's a recognition of the work that he's been doing to bring peace issues to the fore, particularly nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation. So we congratulate him very much and we look very much forward to working with him on these issues. It's a significant achievement and he's acknowledged that himself.
JOURNALIST: Do you think he's done enough so far to deserve it? Or do you think it's more of an acknowledgement of what he can represent in the future in terms of peace?
STEPHEN SMITH: Of course it's a matter for the Nobel Committee to make the decisions and make the announcements. In the course of making their announcement, the Nobel Committee has made clear that they regard his contribution as a significant contribution to international peace and security. We particularly appreciate the remarks that he's made and the stance that he's taken on nuclear disarmament and nuclear non-proliferation, particularly the work he has been doing with President Medvedev in Russia to recommence negotiations for further reductions so far as nuclear weapons are concerned between the United States and Russia. Also his commitment to see the United States sign up for and ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. So these are significant efforts and the Nobel Committee has reflected accordingly its admiration of his efforts.
JOURNALIST: I've just got a questions, Kevin Rudd apparently stayed at Kerry Stokes' holiday house in Broome. Are they good mates or is there some business being done there?
STEPHEN SMITH: Mr Stokes is a well known and well regarded and well respected Western Australian. The Prime Minister stayed overnight at his house in Broome. The Prime Minister indicated at the community cabinet meeting in Broome that Mr Stokes and his wife were providing him with hospitality. It has been, or will be, in the usual way disclosed on the Prime Ministers' declaration of interests. So I don't see anything of significant or any concern about that.
The key thing is the disclosure. The Prime Minister did two things. He disclosed it at the time at the community cabinet meeting in Broome and he has, or will, disclose it in accordance with the requirements for Members of Parliament disclosure. I don't see any difficulty with it. People, whether they're Ministers, Members of Parliament or other business people have discussions with Mr Stokes on a regular basis.
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