Interview with Fran Kelly, Radio National Breakfast
Topics: Visit to India, Australia-India relations, AFP investigation in Israel
Transcript, E&OE
4 March 2010
FRAN KELLY: Foreign Minister Stephen Smith is in Delhi where he' been inspecting the preparations and security details for the Commonwealth Games due in October.
The Commonwealth Games will be the largest sporting event ever held in India.
Our foreign minister says he's convinced that the games will be a triumph and safe as well.
The concerns over attacks on Indian students in Australia continue to overshadow the bilateral relationship. I spoke to Stephen Smith earlier this morning. He came fresh from a meeting with his counterpart, the Indian Foreign Minister, S M Krishna.
STEPHEN SMITH: Pleasure Fran, good morning.
FRAN KELLY: Stephen Smith, you've had a look around at several venues, been prepared for the Commonwealth Games. You've also had a meeting with the Foreign Minister, S M Krishna.
What's your sense of the security preparations for the games?
STEPHEN SMITH: Well I think two aspects. Firstly, the Hockey World Cup is on and I've been to see Australia versus India. In very many respects the World Cup's been used as a bit of a dry run for the Commonwealth Games, but I also yesterday inspected the main athletics stadium, the Nehru Stadium. And in addition to meeting with my counterpart, S M Krishna, importantly I met with the Minister for Home Affairs, Minister Chidambaram who is responsible for security and intelligence and police matters. We are very pleased with the arrangements that have been put in place for the Hockey World Cup, but also for the World Cup generally. It's just a regrettable, deeply regrettable fact of modern life that whether it's an Olympic Games in Sydney or a Commonwealth Games in Delhi, we have to be absolutely vigilant and conscious about the security implications.
FRAN KELLY: Every Olympics or Commonwealth Games seems to exponentially ratchet up the security measures in place, but this time perhaps more than ever. The focus is on security after the reports last month of that threat by a Pakistani militant with links to al-Qaeda, Ilyas Kashmiri, warning the international community specifically against sending competitors to events like the Hockey World Cup or the Commonwealth Games.
In your view, were those threats credible and are they being taken seriously by our government and the Indian Government?
STEPHEN SMITH: We've known for some time, and our travel advisory has reflected this: that there is a high risk of terrorist attacks in India. The so-called 313 Brigade threat which was made, which was aimed at some of the sporting events, I had said publicly that we don't regard that as credible. But putting that to one side, there continues to be a risk of terrorist attacks in India.
FRAN KELLY: Could you ever see a threat though that would prevent Australia sending a team?
STEPHEN SMITH: Well in the end, that of course is a matter for the relevant athletes and sporting associations. What we do do assiduously is we make sure that we arm the associations and the athletes with all of the advice that we have, the travel advice, the threat and the security assessments.
FRAN KELLY: In relation to the latest threat though, the one by Ilyas Kashmiri, your advice to the sporting bodies was to take that threat seriously?
STEPHEN SMITH: As I say, you know, I don't want to, for all of the obvious reasons get into a running commentary of particular threats. But a very good guide is always - not just to athletes, but to the Australian travelling public - is our travel advise and people can see in response to threats that have been made public whether there's a change to the travel advice in that respect.
FRAN KELLY: Minister, the dominant issue in India at the moment as far as Australia is concerned is the safety of Indian citizens is the safety of Indian citizens here, particularly Indian students. Did Mr Krishna seek any new assurances from you on that front?
STEPHEN SMITH: No, but I've come here for three reasons. One has just been to continue to advance the enhanced engagement that we've effected over the last couple of years with India. We signed up a Strategic Partnership with them last year when Prime Minister Rudd came here so there's that; the Commonwealth Games and other security matters that we've spoken about; and also to explain first hand to Ministers and also to the Indian public, the steps that we've taken.
I think there's always been an understanding by the Indian Government and Indian officials about the difficult nature of the problem that we've been dealing with. And the Ministerial Statement I gave in the Parliament recently is a comprehensive aid memoir, I think has gone a long way to satisfying the authorities that we're taking this very seriously. We have a zero tolerance approach to violence and particularly to racial violence, and we're dealing with a difficult issue and leaving no stone unturned to manage it.
Regrettably, because of the adverse publicity, this has done serious damage to Australia's reputation and standing amongst the Indian community and the Indian people more generally. So part of the exercise this week has been frankly an old fashioned sort of public diplomacy effort. Turning the Australia-India World Cup game into a friendship game which I attended with Education Minister Sibal where we awarded the Ajit Pal - Charlesworth Cup reflecting the longstanding hockey tradition between the two nations and two great champions from respective nations.
We've got a big public diplomacy effort to effect, to restore the standing of Australia in the eyes of some members of the Indian community, the general public…
FRAN KELLY: Can I ask you about…
STEPHEN SMITH: …but also…
FRAN KELLY: Can I ask you how you've experienced that there in these three days, given especially the attack on a Sri Lankan man and his Indian wife on the weekend in Melbourne? As you've moved about through the hockey game or through the streets, have you encountered animosity from the community?
STEPHEN SMITH: No, absolutely not. The reception at the hockey, both for the team and for Australians there was very warm, very friendly.
FRAN KELLY: I understand there's some front page pictures of Shane Warne with some Indian students in Melbourne on the front pages of the paper there, which would have gone over pretty well.
STEPHEN SMITH: Well we've had a number of successful sort of stories about Australia and featuring Australians, Shane Warne and our hockey players in the last few days, so that's been a good result for Australia.
FRAN KELLY: And just on another issue minister, the AFP investigation into the theft of the three Australian passports in that assassination of the Hamas leader in Dubai in January. AFP investigators are now in Israel to speak with the Australians caught up in this. What cooperation's been promised Israeli authorities here?
STEPHEN SMITH: I've made it clear that I wasn't going to get into a running commentary.
FRAN KELLY: It's hard to see that they're going to get anywhere unless they can get to the people who might have the answers, and there's plenty of free advice in the newspapers today suggesting that that isn't going to happen, that this is really for domestic consumption here back in Australia.
STEPHEN SMITH: Well in these sorts of issues, I always see plenty of free advice, plenty of gratuitous commentary and that's fine. In my case, I asked the Australian Federal Police Commissioner to conduct an investigation, and when I have the results to that investigation then I'll have something substantive to say. Although I do again underline the point I made to the Israeli Ambassador is that a failure on the part of Israeli authorities and officers to cooperate with our investigation can only lead to, in our view, an adverse conclusion.
FRAN KELLY: And what's your response to the comments from the former Australian Ambassador to Israel, Ross Burns, who questions whether the Australian Government's uncritical support of Israel might have been a factor here in Australians been targeted to somehow get caught up in this assassination.
STEPHEN SMITH: I'm always edified by the musings of former diplomats, but the important decisions which the Australian Government makes, and in my view, successive Australian Governments have made correct foreign policy decisions about Israel which has been supporting a viable enduring long-term peace in the Middle East. That is, in my very strong view, in Australia's national interest to so do.
FRAN KELLY: Stephen Smith, thank you very much for joining us on Breakfast.
STEPHEN SMITH: Thanks Fran, thanks very much.
FRAN KELLY: Foreign Minister Stephen Smith speaking to us early morning from Delhi.
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