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11 February: The Week in Australian Foreign Affairs

11 Feb 2022
By Isabella Keith
Parliament House At Dusk, Canberra ACT Source: Thennicke https://bit.ly/2ZsyTT3

This week in Australian foreign affairs: National Security Committee’s concerns about Ukraine, Australia to reopen to all double-vaccinated visa holders, North Korean missile launches, Dutton’s comments on the South China Sea, and more.

On 7 February, Prime Minister Scott Morrison held a press conference where he reflected on the National Security Committee of Cabinet’s meeting that day. He noted that the Committee discussed the situation in Ukraine, which they “remain highly concerned about.” Morrison further “encourage[d] Russia to continue in their engagements and discussions with other countries who are seeking to resolve this issue. But we hold out real concerns about where this will ultimately lead to. Australia supports Ukraine’s sovereignty and their territorial integrity.”

In the same press conference, Morrison and Minister for Home Affairs Karen Andrews also announced that Australia will reopen to all double-vaccinated visa holders from 21 February. This includes tourists, business travellers, and other visa holders. Visa holders who are not double-vaccinated “will still require a valid travel exemption to enter Australia, and will be subject to state and territory quarantine requirements.”

Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne issued a media release on 3 February regarding North Korea’s recent missile launches. In her statement, Payne noted the Australian Government’s condemnation for “the continuing pattern of provocative and destabilising missile launches conducted by North Korea in contravention of multiple UN Security Council resolutions.” She stated that North Korea’s “pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles pose a grave threat to international peace and security and is contrary to global and regional interests in a stable, secure and rules-based Indo-Pacific.” Payne reiterated Australia’s commitment to “maintaining and enforcing sanctions against North Korea until it takes clear steps to abandon its nuclear weapons, other weapons of mass destruction, and ballistic missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner.”

On 6 February, Payne issued a statement on the one-year anniversary of Australian Professor Sean Turnell’s detention by the Myanmar military. She reiterated calls for Professor Turnell’s immediate release and stated that his detention is “unjust” and that the Australian Government “reject[s] the allegations against him.” Payne noted that “consistent with basic standards of justice and transparency, we expect that Professor Turnell should have unimpeded access to his lawyers, and that Australian officials be able to observe his court proceedings.”

Payne met with her Lithuanian counterpart, Gabrielius Landsbergis, in Canberra on 9 February. During his visit, Landsbergis opened Lithuania’s first embassy in Canberra, which the Ministers referred to as reflective of the “strong and growing bilateral relationship”. The Ministers reiterated the shared values that form the basis of the bilateral relationship: “democracy, human rights, rule of law, and open markets, underpinned by strong people-to-people links.” They further reaffirmed their support for multilateral organisations including the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, with Payne noting that “Australia has a substantial interest in the issues raised in the dispute brought by the European Union regarding discriminatory trade practices imposed on Lithuania and has requested to join the consultations.”

In comments provided to the Sydney Morning Herald on 7 February, Minister for Defence Peter Dutton argued that Australia needs to stand up to China in the South China Sea. He stated that “the United States and others acquiesced and allowed the militarisation now to the point where China has 20 points of presence in the South China Sea, which does not help stability in the region. If we continue on that trajectory, then I think we’ll lose the next decade.” In his comments, Dutton also expressed his confidence that Australia will obtain its first nuclear-powered submarine under the AUKUS agreement before 2038.

On 9 February, Minister for Trade Dan Tehan travelled to India to advance negotiations on the India-Australia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with his Indian counterpart, Piyush Goyal. Ahead of his trip, Tehan noted that “Australia and India are important trading partners, and we share a strong desire to further enhance our bilateral trade relationship … CECA is a potential game-changer in opening opportunities for both Australia and India. It is also an important piece of our post-COVID economic recovery.”

Isabella Keith is a weekly columnist for Australian Outlook. She is also an undergraduate student at the Australian National University studying Law and Politics, Philosophy and Economics. Isabella’s research interests include international law and comparative constitutional law.

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