Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Wong. Can the minister outline steps the government is taking to ensure Australia's security?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister—I thank the senator!—for his question and for his interest in international relations and foreign affairs and security. Today the Prime Minister and the defence minister announced details of the Defence Strategic Review. In 2020, the Defence Strategic Update identified that changes in Australia's strategic environment were accelerating far more rapidly than was predicted in the 2012 Force Posture Review. So, to meet these challenges, the Defence Strategic Review, which was announced today, will examine force structure, force posture and preparedness. It will also examine investment prioritisation. The objective, which I would hope is shared across the chamber, is to ensure that the Defence Force, the Australian Defence Force, has the right capabilities to meet the growing strategic needs Australia faces.

The government has appointed two eminent leads to conduct the review: former minister for defence and for foreign affairs Professor the Hon. Steven Smith, and former CDF Air Chief Marshal Sir Angus Houston (Rtd). This work will help ensure that the ADF is well positioned to meet the security challenges we face over the next decade and beyond. You see, the Albanese government understands well that Australia's security, in a more complex and contested world, means we have to use all elements of state power, and we have to ensure all elements of state power are fit for purpose—that is, strategic, economic, social and diplomatic. The purpose, of course, is always the advancement of Australian interest and Australian values.

Unfortunately, we do know there was a great deal of damage done to Australia's international relationships by the previous government. But we have made a strong start since the change of government. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sheldon, first supplementary?

Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Minister, for a comprehensive answer. Can the minister outline the government's engagement with regional partners, including ASEAN?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I, again, thank the senator for a very important question. Of course, South-East Asia and the focus on South-East Asia is just so important for Australia's security and something that we, on this side of the chamber, have always understood, which is why, if you look at the history of government in this country, it is Labor governments which have brought such a strong focus to South-East Asia. We recognise, on this side of the chamber, that our future is tied to the future of the region we share. So deepening our partnership with ASEAN is one of my top priorities as foreign minister. Australia's interests lie in shaping a strategic equilibrium in the region, where countries are not forced to choose, but can make their own sovereign choices, and ASEAN is central to that.

I am, today, departing for Phnom Penh for ASEAN meetings.

An opposition senator: Another junket!

'A junket'? Well, I'll take that interjection. It just shows the disrespect for ASEAN and the importance of security in our region from the other side, and I suggest you should speak to Senator Birmingham about that interjection.

The:

Order. Your time has expired, Minister. Senator Sheldon, a second supplementary?

Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How is the government working to shape a region that is peaceful and predictable and where disputes are not simply guided by power and size?

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you to the senator for the supplementary. He phrases the question in a way that is really important. Others have described it differently: 'We want a region that is non-hegemonic'; 'We want a region where sovereignty is protected'. But it is in Australia's interests—and this I do think is a bipartisan objective, even if, on how we get there, we may differ. We want a region where disputes are not simply guided by power and size, and central to that is working with the countries of our region, including ASEAN, as well as the Pacific, ensuring we have relationships that are deep and trusting and relationships where we are able to be a partner of choice.

Partnerships matter because it's how we build the kind of region we want. It's how we build the kind of region that serves—that is in accordance with—the interests of the Australian people and the interests of the nation: a region at peace, not in conflict, which is why we will continue to work with partners to promote peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.