Marise Payne (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Paterson very much for his question and particularly for his interest in these key issues, because it is the case that the Morrison government is delivering clear outcomes in Australia's interests—in the Indo-Pacific, in our bilateral engagement and in our multilateral engagement. As I noted in the Senate yesterday, we're the first country to secure a comprehensive strategic partnership with ASEAN and have formed CSPs with both India and Malaysia in the last two years alone, as well as our Comprehensive Strategic and Economic Partnership with Papua New Guinea—all key regional relationships. We've seen remarkable progress on the Quad over the past two years, from just the first ministerial in-person meeting in 2019 to realising the historic in-person Quad Leaders' Summit in September of this year. We've advanced our cooperation with Quad partners to make the region stronger, more prosperous and more stable through delivering practical outcomes together with the United States, with Japan and with India.

To enhance our national security for decades to come we have entered a partnership with the United Kingdom and the United States to share technology, including cyber, quantum and artificial intelligence, as well as nuclear propulsion systems for a new fleet of submarines. This is a landmark agreement. Only once before has a country agreed to share such nuclear powered submarine technology with another nation, and that was the United States with the United Kingdom in the 1950s—over six decades ago. These outcomes—bilateral and others—are significant steps in our longstanding partnerships and also cognisant of the changing strategic environment, befitting of the depth of, and our shared interests in, the security and prosperity of our region and the interests of the Australian people.