Peter Stefanovic, Host: Joining us live now is the Foreign Minister Penny Wong for her thoughts on this. Minister, it's good to have you with us this morning. Thank you for your time. So let's start off with your response to this attack?
Penny Wong, Foreign Minister: Good to be with you, thanks for having me. We think this was the wrong thing to do by Israel. As you know, Qatar is a US ally. Qatar has been hosting and working towards the ceasefire that we all want, the return of hostages we all want, has been working with the United States to try and broker that ceasefire, has put an enormous amount of work in. I think this strike imperils that ceasefire, violates Qatar's sovereignty, and risks regional escalation and further escalation which is in no one's interests.
Stefanovic: Is there any way that this attack could be justified, like Iran in the past, if Hamas leadership is keeping hostages and delaying peace talks?
Foreign Minister: Well, the issue is this is Qatar's sovereignty that we're describing and this is Qatar that the attack occurred in. We all have a very clear position on Hamas. Hamas is a terrorist organisation, we've listed it as such. We condemn the horrific acts of October 7 and we call on them to release hostages. But this is an attack in Doha on a country that has been working with the United States to try and broker a ceasefire to ensure the hostages are released. And you would have seen the comments overnight from the US Administration which expresses similar concerns.
Stefanovic: A real pickle the United States is in on this, isn't it Minister? It's an ally to both nations.
Foreign Minister: Well I think the US is the country that is uniquely placed to broker a ceasefire. Obviously, Qatar has been helping. We want the Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, to be able to land a ceasefire and hostage deal to return the hostages safely and respectfully. That's what we all want.
Stefanovic: How much do you think the peace process has now been delayed?
Foreign Minister: Well, I think that remains to be seen. What I do know is we do want to see that, and we also want to see aid flowing into Gaza. The deprivation that the international community, that all of us are seeing there, is just not acceptable.
Stefanovic: Well, I mean, with your insights and expertise Minister, what happens now? I mean, we're getting into the realms of speculation, but does Egypt have to pick things up? I mean, Qatar is not going to want to do it are they?
Foreign Minister: Well, I heard in your introduction the comments that you were referencing. I don't know where we go from there, I hope that Qatar can continue to stay engaged because we need them to be. And this is why this decision by Prime Minister Netanyahu is so destructive, because these negotiations were fundamentally about ending the war and having hostages returned and having the situation in Gaza alleviated.
Stefanovic: Okay, let's get to Vanuatu. How disappointed are you that our defence agreement with Vanuatu couldn't be signed?
Foreign Minister: Obviously I understand, having worked in the Pacific now for a number of years as the Foreign Minister, these require patient, respectful, sometimes very lengthy discussions. We came to government when we had lost a decade under the coalition, including through their position on climate change, but as much their neglect of the Pacific. We've tried to turn that around. You've seen me very actively engaging the Pacific, the Prime Minister as well, Minister Conroy, the Deputy Prime Minister. There's been a lot of engagement. We understand you have to work through these things patiently, respectfully, listen to people's concerns, and we'll continue to do that with Vanuatu, as we have with all countries of the region.
Stefanovic: Is China just more persuasive, Minister? I mean, it's at the heart of this. What does it say that these countries, and just point to Vanuatu here, would essentially rather do business with China than us?
Foreign Minister: I've been very upfront with the Australian people that we are in a permanent contest now in the Pacific. We lost the opportunity to be the only partner of choice, and now we work to be the partner of choice in Australia's interests, in the interests of peace and security in the region. I've also been really clear both with Australians and with the countries of the Pacific, we think our security is best preserved, is best protected, that stability is best contributed to, if the Pacific family works together, if security is provided through members of the Pacific family, which of course includes Australia. That is our position. That's the basis of the discussions with all countries.
Stefanovic: Finally, Minister, you're launching an online safety service today to protect young Australians traveling overseas. Well, I guess they don't have to be young – people of all ages drink – but this is from methanol poisoning, and there has been those terrible stories in recent months. What is the service and why should folks check it out?
Foreign Minister: Well this is primarily focused at younger Australians and this arose because of the tragic deaths of Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, two beautiful Australian teenagers who died in Laos as a consequence of methanol poisoning. And one of the things when I spoke with the families, that we said we obviously want justice for these deaths, but we also want to try and work to make sure this doesn't happen to another family, another young Australian. So these are resources on the Smartraveller website, partying safely, tips for parents, for schools, for universities, and also for young people, about how you can best keep yourself safe. So go to Smartraveller and have a look if you're heading overseas.
Stefanovic: How do you protect yourself fully against that though? I mean, you can go to countries that just sell cheap booze, and, you know, you can have a few and not really think about matters. I mean, is there any way to fully protect yourself against that?
Foreign Minister: One of the tips is don't drink cheap booze and free shots, because it's obviously a higher risk. And of course, it's almost a rite of passage for Australians. We go overseas and we have a fun time, this is part of what almost all of us, will try and do – or many of us try and do when we're younger, after we leave school. It's a pretty common experience. Unfortunately, not every country has the sorts of standards around alcohol that we do. And of course, if methanol is in your drink, you can't taste it, but it's deadly. So you need to try and make sure you do whatever you can to keep yourself safe. Sealed bottles and cans from reputable suppliers – unfortunately I know that sometimes is hard overseas – but they remain the safest option.
Stefanovic: Okay, good point. That's the Foreign Minister, Penny Wong, joining us there for a lengthy chat. Thank you so much, Minister. We'll chat again soon.