This week in Australian foreign affairs: comments on Julian Assange and Dr Yang Hengjun; Marles to travel to Jakarta for defence talks; Gallagher to travel to Rio de Janeiro for G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting; Trade delegation to WTO announced, and more.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been in Western Australia. While there the PM addressed a number of issues related to Australians overseas. On 22 February, the PM commented on the news on that Australian citizen Dr Yang Hengjun was not going to appeal against his suspended death sentence in China, noting that the government had been advocating on his behalf. Meanwhile, in questions about Julian Assange, Albanese stated “that he should be returned home. Enough is enough.” On whether or not Australia would intervene if Assange’s case did not go his way, the PM stated that the government would “have to engage diplomatically.” “I have raised at the highest levels with the United States and the United Kingdom, Mr. Assange’s case. I have put the view very clearly, privately, as I have publicly, that enough is enough. It’s time Julian Assange was brought home. I’ve engaged with his legal team on a regular basis as well, on a strategy to try to get through this and come out the other side in Mr. Assange’s interest.” Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles stated on the 21 February that “it is appropriate for Australia to say in respect of one of its citizens, that we expect that this is resolved and that we expect finality – you can’t just have a situation where someone is indefinitely incarcerated. And so we have been engaging in that advocacy since the moment we came to power.”

At a press conference on 19 February, Albanese also stated that he had spoken to the Indonesian President-elect and had been the first leader to do so. In a separate interview, the PM referred to the Indonesian elections as “the greatest democratic exercise on a single day in human history.”

Also on 19 February, Albanese commented on questions about the recent violence in Papua New Guinea. “Police in Papua New Guinea have just confirmed that there’s been a horrifying massacre in the Highlands region there with at least 53 killed in tribal fighting.” The PM remarked that he was in regular contact with Prime Minister James Marape. “The offer has been there and been communicated to Mr. Marape that should any assistance be required, then it would be given.”

Pressed on the topic of Alexei Navalny’s death, Albanese remarked that “Australia is shocked and saddened by the news of Alexei Navalny’s death, and we hold Vladimir Putin and the Russian regime responsible for this death in prison.”

On 22 February Marles announced he will travel to Jakarta, Indonesia for high-level defence and security discussions. Marles “will meet with his counterpart, Indonesian Minister of Defence, Prabowo Subianto, to work towards finalising the Australia-Indonesia Defence Cooperation Agreement.” On comments made on 21 February about Chief of Defence Force Angus Campbell meet Indonesia’s President-elect, Marles stated that “it was a very good meeting and it follows on from meetings that I’ve had with Minister Prabowo. We have never been closer I think in terms of the way in which we are working with our Indonesian counterparts. And I say that in terms of the defence cooperation.”

In a joint media release with Minister for Finance, Women and the Public Service, Senator Katy Gallagher on 19 February, Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced that “Gallagher will travel to Rio de Janeiro this week, to lead Australia’s delegation at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.” The Foreign Ministers’ Meeting will mark the first ministerial meeting of Brazil’s year as G20 president. Wong noted that Australia “welcomes Brazil’s prioritisation of gender equality as a core commitment of its G20 presidency. As Minister for Finance and Minister for Women, Minister Gallagher will support Brazil in bringing women’s voices to the G20.” “While in Brazil, Minister Gallagher will also undertake other ministerial meetings with G20 members, including MIKTA ministers from Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, and Turkiye.”

Also on 19 February, Wong issued a joint media release with Minister for International Development and the Pacific Pat Conroy announcing further “support for a healthy Papua New Guinea with a new package to help address major health challenges, including HIV, malaria, and antimicrobial resistance.” The new package will be funded through the Partnerships for a Healthy Region initiative and will include expertise drawn from “including the Kirby Institute, the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, the Burnet Institute, and the University of Newcastle.” The Partnerships for a Healthy Region “is a $620 million initiative to support partner countries in the Pacific and Southeast Asia to build resilient and equitable health systems.”

Minister for Trade and Tourism Senator Don Farrell and Assistant Minister for Trade Senator Tim Ayres issued a joint media release on 23 February announcing Australia’s delegation to Abu Dhabi for the 13th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC13) from 26 to 29 February. Australia’s aim at the conference will be “fixing the dispute settlement system, so that the rights and obligations of WTO Members can be enforced,[…] agricultural trade reform, the conclusion of negotiations on fisheries subsidies, and a renewal of the moratorium on imposing customs duties on electronic transmissions.” The delegation will also “seek to launch new discussions on key trade-related global challenges affecting Australia, such as industrial policy, environmental sustainability, and economic inclusion.” “Minister Farrell will also meet with senior ministers and business representatives of the UAE – Australia’s largest Middle East trading partner – to progress negotiations for trade agreement, and promote stronger investment ties.”

Dr Adam Bartley is the managing editor for AIIA’s Australian Outlook and weekly columnist for The Week in Australian Foreign Affairs. He is a former Fulbright Scholar and resident fellow at the Elliot School for International Affairs, the George Washington University. Adam also has positions as post-doctoral fellow at the Centre for Cyber Security Research and Innovation RMIT University  and as program manager of the AI Trilateral Experts Group. He can be found on Twitter here.

This article is published under a Creative Commons License and may be republished with attribution.