E&OE............
JOURNALIST:
Surely the lamb issue came up, what did you say?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes it did. The President and I had a one-on-one meeting before lunch.
We talked about lamb mainly during that discussion and I made it plain
to him that that issue had caused a greater adverse reaction in Australia
on a trade matter than any other trade issue that I could remember.
JOURNALIST:
You are really furious about it aren't you?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, we are very unhappy, very unhappy. And we made it very plain
that the thing that particularly upset us was the imposition of a
tariff on the in-quota area. I raised with him the difficulty of the
transitional impact of the decision and our officials have agreed
to work on that. I pointed out that we would pursue our remedies in
the World Trade Organisation and that we would be providing compensation
to the Australian lamb producers who have been adversely affected
by this decision. Both of us agreed that our differences on lamb notwithstanding,
we had to work together to achieve freer trade goals within the confines
of the World Trade Organisation. We are both going to work very hard
on getting a Leaders' Declaration out of the APEC meeting in New Zealand
directed towards ensuring that we have a good result at the World
Trade Organisation when the comprehensive trade round commences which
we both very strongly support.
JOURNALIST:
How did the President respond on lamb?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, the President understood that we were very angered about it
and very upset about it. He indicated that there were domestic considerations
that he took into account and that he believed that taking in account
of those considerations was important to the broader goals he felt
that he had in relation to trade. I mean, I really think they are
questions that have to be directed to him. I mean, I put a view, I
put a view publicly, I put a view privately, I am repeating it here
today. Everybody knows our position. We are upset at the decision
but it's not going to be changed. I understand that. It doesn't make
it any easier for us. We don't agree with the decision but equally
we can't allow it to contaminate a broader relationship -- certainly
not the security aspects of that relationship.
JOURNALIST:
Has it not already affected the relationship?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, it's caused the most adverse reaction of any trade decision
the United States has taken in recent times. I can't think of one
that's caused a more adverse reaction in Australia. Now, I told the
President that. I told those who were at the lunch that. Now, that
doesn't mean that you are allowed to contaminate other aspects of
a very broad, a very deep relationship. Somebody asked me about the
aid workers. I discussed their fate at length last night with the
Secretary of State. I raised their position with the President and
others during the luncheon today and they both indicated that they
would do all they could over the days and weeks ahead to build the
pressure to secure their release. We remain very concerned about their
situation and we certainly appreciate the efforts that have been made
by a lot of people and we'll, of course, continue to make our own
efforts to bring about their release.
JOURNALIST:
And what about Indonesia and Timor, Prime Minister,.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, we discussed Indonesia and Timor at very great length over lunch.
I said that Indonesia deserved from the world perhaps a little more
credit and a little more praise and understanding for the transition
that was occurring in that country towards a more democratic system
of government. We remain very strongly committed to a clean and open
ballot in East Timor to determine the fate of that territory. I said
that it was important to keep things in proportion. There are 950,000
people in East Timor, there are 211 million people in the whole of
Indonesia and it's important that the rest of the world understand
that proportionality and the pressures that are on Indonesia in relation
to the whole of the country and not just East Timor.
JOURNALIST:
Sir, is there anything the President can do to make up to Australia,
to compensate in some other area?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, look, it's not a question of making up or compensating in other
areas; it's a question of dealing with the merits of individual issues.
When you have a relationship which is as old as ours and is as close
as ours you can talk very frankly and very directly when you are upset
about something in perhaps a way you can't when you have a relationship
with another country. Now, we are very upset about this particular
issue and there's no point in mincing words about it. But on other
issues, of course, we'll continue to work very closely together and
I think it's a question of moving on to ensure as best we can together
to get good outcomes from the World Trade Organisation. I think that
would be a good goal for both countries to set themselves but that's
not going to alter our sense of disappointment.
JOURNALIST:
What do you want the WTO to do?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I want the WTO to do something more to free up trade in agriculture,
for example. Because that's something that we are very good at and
we think the rules on agriculture now are loaded against countries
like Australia and we have just seen an example of it.
JOURNALIST:
The US wants an early harvest on agriculture, they want agriculture..
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, we wall want that. Everybody wants an early harvest. Some get
it and some don't.
JOURNALIST:
The American Farm Bureau is saying that's detrimental to agriculture,
they want a singular undertaking so that agriculture will get the
full benefits..
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, as a very efficient agricultural exporting nation Australia
has an unambiguous national interest in having as liberal a trading
environment in agriculture as possible. That has always been our position
and that is why, of course, we are very disappointed and upset and
cranky about the US lamb decision.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, did you raise the issue of China joining the WTO..
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, yes. The President indicated to me that he is very strongly in
favour of China joining the World Trade Organisation. We discussed
that at very considerable length and we'll be working together to
bring that about.
JOURNALIST:
What about your concerns about the relationship between the US and
China after the bombing in Belgrade?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, he raised that. I mean, it's self-evident that that has been
a setback to US/China relations. I think that's a matter for the American
administration to talk about rather than me.
JOURNALIST:
Given the performance on lamb how can you be confident that Mr Clinton
will show a leadership role at the WTO..
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I think on this, as in all other political things, you have
to react to what people do and give praise where it is due and criticise
where you don't agree with what's being done. I mean, as I said, we
have a very broad relationship with the United States. We are unhappy
about one aspect of it at the present time but there are a lot of
other things that we are not unhappy about. The President's reaffirmed
his commitment to the importance of APEC. He understands, as I do,
the importance of the APEC leaders coming out very strongly in favour
of an effective world trade round. We both want to have an effective
World Trade Organisation round. We want it to be comprehensive, we
want everything on the table. We both said today to each other that
we want to work together on that. Well, let's see what happens. I
think in six months you come and ask me the same question and I'll
give you my reaction.
JOURNALIST:
It's outcomes that count.
PRIME MINISTER:
Outcomes always count in politics. They are far more important than
rhetoric. It's outcomes that matter and it's outcomes that electorates
either in the United States or in Australia respond to. Thank you.
[ends]