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ASHLEIGH GILLON: Some of the Australians who were caught up in the Gaza flotilla crisis have now been deported from Israel to Istanbul. It comes as another boat threatens to break Israel's Gaza blockade.

I spoke with the Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith, a short time ago.

Minister, thank you for your time.

STEPHEN SMITH: Pleasure.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Four Australians caught up in that Gaza flotilla crisis have now been deported from Israel to Istanbul. What's the next step? Are they due back in Australia soon?

STEPHEN SMITH: In the last hour or so, the two Sydney Morning Herald employees — Paul McGeough, the journalist, and Kate Geraghty, the photographer — have arrived in Istanbul. They were met there by our Consul-General. I'm advised that they're safe and well and it'll now be a matter for them as to when they return to Australia but they're now in the company of Australian officials.

Mr Talib, who is suffering from the gunshot wound, remains in hospital. It's expected that he'll be in hospital for several days but once he's fit to travel he will also leave Israel.

One of the Australian women has chosen to remain in the detention centre until he is fit to travel. There's obviously a relationship between those two.

The second Australian woman, we expect to arrive in Istanbul in the course of today and we have an official at the airport awaiting her arrival.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: The Prime Minister said he requested that Mr Netanyahu closely observe the process involving Australians. Has that happened? Are you pleased with the way Australians have been handled post-this crisis?

STEPHEN SMITH: To date we've got nothing to express concern about. We just want to wait until we've got all of the Australians safely at hand, so to speak, and then we'll have a careful review of the consular arrangements.

We were pleased, of course, that we were given consular access, including whilst there was no legal or diplomatic obligation, including to Mr McGeough who is a permanent resident rather than an Australian citizen. We'll have a close look at that after the event. For the moment we're now awaiting the arrival of an Australian woman at Istanbul airport and, on her arrival she'll be met by one of our officials, and the other two will remain in Israel pending Mr Talib being in a fit state to travel.

REPORTER: Another ship crewed by activists is now apparently on its way to try to break that blockade. How would you hope the Israeli authorities deal with that case?

STEPHEN SMITH: We would hope that given the terrible events of the last couple of days that all parties exercise commonsense and restraint. The last thing we want to see is a repetition of the shocking events of the last couple of days. So we would hope that everyone in the area — everyone — exercises restraint and approaches these matters in a calm way.

REPORTER: Were you disappointed that Israel has played down calls for the need for an internal inquiry?

STEPHEN SMITH: Our position, the Australian position, has not changed and our position has been reflected by the Security Council statement. We continue to believe, as I've said publicly, as the Prime Minister has said publicly, and as was the subject of a conversation between him and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, that Israel now needs to conduct a credible and transparent investigation so that the facts are there for all to see and for that to be subject to the scrutiny of the international community.

That's in Israel's interests as well as the international community's interests.

REPORTER: On another matter, an Australian woman has been taken into custody in Yemen over alleged links to Al-Qaeda. What information do you have about this and is the Government doing anything to help her?

STEPHEN SMITH: There are two aspects to it. Firstly, as was indicated in Senate Estimates yesterday, on the advice of the Director-General of ASIO, I cancelled her passport a couple of weeks ago. That was on security grounds and I'm not, for all of the obvious reasons, proposing to go further than that.

She has two young children, we don't have an Embassy in the Yemen, but we've sent an officer from Saudi Arabia, from Riyadh, to render consular assistance.

We have put the view to the Yemen authorities that the wishes of the mother in respect of the children should be followed. And her wish is for the children to be cared for by family friends or for the children to return to Australia, and we're urging that upon the Yemeni authorities.

We believe the best outcome is for the children to be given their passports, they have their own passports, and for them to return to Australia and we're urging that upon the Yemeni authorities.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Did Australia give the Yemeni authorities any information about this woman that could have led to her arrest?

STEPHEN SMITH: I'm not proposing to go into any of the matters that would go to the security information or arrangements in place. I have been happy to confirm on the public record that, as was indicated in Senate Estimates by officials, that on the advice of the Director-General of ASIO I cancelled her passport.

We are concerned to make sure that everything we can do to have her wishes respected so far as her young children are concerned are met and we're working very hard with the Yemeni authorities on that point. We've made it clear to them that we frankly see no reason why the children should not be allowed to return on their own passports to Australia.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: The US President is, of course, dealing with the BP oil spill. Is there a risk that President Obama's visit to Australia later this month will be cancelled?

STEPHEN SMITH: We, of course, want him to come. We understood the reasons for his deferral on the previous occasion but in these matters we always await the official advice of the White House as to the detailed arrangements for any trip. So…

ASHLEIGH GILLON: But how likely is it, do you think, that he won't be coming?

STEPHEN SMITH: I'm not going to get into a guessing game. In all of these matters any visit by the United States President is a matter for the White House to announce the details of that. We've made it clear that whenever the President wants to visit Australia of course he will be welcomed not just by the Government but by the Parliament and the Australian people.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: A much more fraught relationship is with Fiji. You held meetings this week with several of your Pacific counterparts about the ongoing problems with that country. As Foreign Minister, have you managed to make any progress at all in convincing Fiji to hold democratic elections?

STEPHEN SMITH: Well the meeting in Auckland, was a meeting of the Fiji Ministerial Contact Group which is chaired by Tonga, chaired by the Tongan Prime Minister who is also the Foreign Minister, and had representatives either Foreign Ministers or Ministers from Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tuvalu.

We received a report from the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, and that essentially detailed what I'd said publicly which was, if anything, since the last time the Contact Group met things had gone backwards in Fiji in an economic sense, in a political sense, in a freedom of speech sense.

So we continue to be very concerned. We very much want to continue a dialogue with Fiji to try and bring Fiji to democracy.

Since the meeting, Commodore Bainimarama has said that neither Australia nor New Zealand is welcome. There are two points about that. Firstly, that's very disappointing and deeply regrettable. Secondly, this is not about Australia, this is about the Pacific Islands Forum establishing a Ministerial Contact Group chaired by Tonga, with broad representation from the Forum, wanting to engage in a dialogue. The problem is we can't force a dialogue upon Commodore Bainimarama or Fiji. A dialogue has got to be two-way, it can't be one-way.

But we continue to want to engage with Fiji because it's not in Fiji's interests, either economically or socially, to continue to be under the rule of a military regime. It's important to Fiji, important to the Pacific Islands Forum, important to our region that Fiji return to democracy.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Outside Parliament House today, bus loads of people are arriving to protest the deportation of Sheikh Monsour. What is your message to those people out there today?

STEPHEN SMITH: They are perfectly entitled, obviously, to express their point of view. One of the things we pride ourselves on in Australia is the right to freedom of expression and the right to do that in a peaceful and peaceable way. So they're perfectly entitled to put their point of view.

The Minister for Immigration, Senator Evans, has indicated publicly that he's proposing to effect his deportation on security grounds. I understand that there is cooperation between him [Sheikh Monsour] and the Commonwealth on this point. People are perfectly entitled to put a view about a Government decision but Senator Evans has made a decision on security grounds to deport him.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: So when the UN wrote to the Immigration Minister requesting that he not be deported, the UN was wrong?

STEPHEN SMITH: The UN is entitled to express its point of view. It's not a point of view which binds Australia legally in any way. Obviously we always give consideration to what a United Nations point of view might be. But, in the end, Senator Evans has made it clear that he is proposing to deport him on security grounds. And we are always, as we should be, as we have to be, very diligent, very conscientious and very vigilant about our security requirements and our security needs.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Several retiring MPs are delivering their valedictory speeches today in parliament. Should we see that as a hint that the election will be called before Parliament is due to resume in August?

STEPHEN SMITH: This is the standard practice that about this time when there is a prospect of an election that the valedictories occur in the course of the…

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Do you think an election will be called before parliament resumes in August?

STEPHEN SMITH: Well, there's only one person who knows that, and it's not me. But what we do want to make sure from a Parliamentary point of view is that those retiring members don't miss their chance, and that's why the opportunity is afforded to them in the course of the Budget session to make their valedictory remarks.

What we do know is the election will be in the course of the second half of this year and…

ASHLEIGH GILLON: And you're not going to tell us more than that.

STEPHEN SMITH: Well, if I knew, I wouldn't tell you.

There's only one person who might know and I suspect he hasn't made a judgement about that.

What we do know is that we're going to have an election in the course of this year and at some point in the cycle the starter's gun will be fired and the community after four weeks will make their judgement.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Just finally on a much sadder note, has Australia expressed its condolences to Britain over the shootings overnight?

STEPHEN SMITH: I haven't had the opportunity of doing that personally with Foreign Secretary William Hague but at opening of business our High Commissioner will express, on Australia's behalf, our condolences to the British people. It's a terrible tragic event. We have been on the receiving end in Australia of comparable terrible tragedies, and so our thoughts and our hearts go out to them and to the families and friends and loved ones of the people who have been killed.

So it's a terrible day for the United Kingdom. We have great historical and people-to-people links. There are so many of us who have travelled or studied or worked there, and there are many of us who have been to the areas where the atrocities occurred. So it's a bad day for the United Kingdom, for the British people, and our hearts and our thoughts are with them.

ASHLEIGH GILLON: Foreign Minister, thanks for your time.

STEPHEN SMITH: Thanks very much.

END

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