Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a) notes:

(i) concerning reports that over two dozen members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) will take part in the annual Ulchi-Freedom Guardian war games alongside American and South Korean troops later this month,

(ii) that the war games will take place against a backdrop of escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea, and a heightened risk of miscalculation leading to war,

(iii) that North Korea routinely denounces the war games as preparation for an invasion, and in 2016 conducted a nuclear test following the exercises, and

(iv) that the participation of ADF personnel in the Ulchi-Freedom Guardian war games will insert Australia into a potentially very dangerous conflict between unpredictable nuclear states; and

(b) calls on the Government to:

(i) immediately withdraw Australian participation in the Ulchi-Freedom Guardian war games, and

(ii) directly urge United States President, Donald Trump, to de-escalate tensions, rather than continue to ratchet them up.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australia is committed to the long-term peace and stability in our region. We work closely with our partners and allies to achieve this. Australia supports the sovereign right of South Korea to conduct military exercises inside the terms of the 1953 armistice agreement and to defend itself from aggression. Since the mid-1970s, the annual exercise Ulchi-Freedom Guardian has been focused on the defence of South Korea.

Australia is an active member of United Nations Command, which coordinates multinational forces in South Korea and has participated annually in Ulchi-Freedom Guardian since 2010. This year, 25 Australians will participate in this year's command post exercise, a desktop-based exercise featuring computer simulation. Australia will continue to work closely with our friends and allies for peace.

Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to make a short statement.

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for one minute.

Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I make this statement to try and convince the Senate to support this motion. What person in their right mind would think that now is a good time to conduct a military exercise with US military forces in the Korean Peninsula?

Honourable senators interjecting—

Gavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Whish-Wilson, resume your seat, please. The senator has the right to be heard in silence. I would ask all senators to respect Senator Whish-Wilson as he speaks.

Peter Whish-Wilson (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The last year this exercise was conducted, the madman in Pyongyang exploded an atomic bomb—tested an atomic bomb—as a signal to the US that they didn't appreciate this. Now is a very, very sensitive time. We have seen a clear escalation of tensions. We have seen provocation after provocation in North Korea. We saw some welcome de-escalation in this debate in the last 24 hours, where both sides have dialled back their rhetoric. Why are we going ahead and participating in a military exercise in North Korea at a time when every expert recognises that this is a very dangerous and volatile situation?

Question negatived.