PM: I arrived in Vietnam yesterday and of course it's great to be here for the East Asia Summit.
Yesterday I met with the Prime Minister of New Zealand, we discussed a range of matters involving Australia's very close, long standing and deep friendship with New Zealand and of course I'm looking forward to visiting New Zealand next year. We did discuss the regional protection framework and regional processing centre and we also shared concerns over Fiji.
I also had the opportunity yesterday to meet with the United Nations Secretary-General. We talked through a broad range of issues, obviously Australia is a long standing, indeed founding supporter of the United Nations. We worked through a set of issues involving our participation in the United Nations including
I've got someone's phone, who wants that? I could have answered that for you!
So, Australia's participation in the United Nations, including our bid for the Security Council, we also addressed issues of climate change and I raised with the United Nations Secretary-General the Australian proposal for a regional protection framework and regional processing centre.
I also, yesterday, had the opportunity to meet with the Prime Minister of Singapore. I had hoped to see him at the Asia Europe Meeting, but as people would be aware that as a result of the death of his mother he returned home.
It was a good opportunity to talk about the strength of the relationship between Australia and Singapore. It's a deep economic relationship, we talked about further co-operation on education, particularly vocational education and training. We also talked about the contribution that Singapore is making in Oruzgan province in Afghanistan, working alongside Australian soldiers.
This morning I had the opportunity to meet with Premier Wen of the People's Republic of China, I've had that meeting this morning. I was very pleased to receive an invitation from him for me to visit China in the course of next year and I very much look forward to that visit.We talked across the full range of our relationship, which of course is a very strong economic relationship, but deeper than that we talked about our political relationship and our defence relationship. We talked about matters at the East Asia Summit today, including proposals for Finance Minister's meetings and for Education Minister's meetings.
We talked about outlooks for the G20, including nothing that progress has been made on IMF reform, something Australia very very strongly supported. We also talked about co-operation on education and the importance of people to people links, the importance of students from both counties having the opportunity to study in and learn about the other nation.
I will move from here to the actual opening of the East Asia Summit. I had the opportunity to attend the dinner last night and that was a fantastic occasion, hosted here of course by Vietnam.
This is a meeting, the East Asia Summit, that brings together political leaders who represent around 50 percent of the world's population and more than a third of the world's GDP. It is an important meeting to recognise the strategic importance of our region. It's an important meeting to recognise the dynamic growth of our region.
This meeting will welcome the moves to include the US and Russia and as I believe people are aware Secretary of State Clinton is here and did participate in the dinner last night. Their inclusion, the US and Russia, is something that Australia has very much pushed for and we are glad to see that their formal participation in the East Asia Summit will be formalised today.
At the Summit I will make a contribution on economic integration, on trade and economic matters. I will be making a contribution on having a second Finance Minister's meeting, which I think is important to ensuring we pursue the economic integration agenda. I will be indicating Australia's strong support for in Education Minister's meeting.
I will be raising the issue of people smuggling. I will be raising co-operation on disaster recovery and I will, of course, be raising our concerns about the upcoming elections in Burma, where of course Australia is committed to pressing for free elections, for transparency, for the release of political prisoners including Aung San Su Kyi and for reconciliation within Burma.
Later today I will be chairing the Australia ASEAN Summit. This is the first Summit since 1977. That's a long time and that obviously gives me the opportunity to talk directly to ASEAN about Australia's relationships in the region and I will be talking particularly about the development agenda.
Later today I will have the opportunity to have a discussion with the Prime Minister of India, with the Prime Minister of Laos and with the President of the Republic of the Philippines. So I'm looking forward to those engagements later today. I'm very happy to take questions.
JOURNALIST: What response did you get from Ban Ki-moon when you talked about your ideas for a regional processing centre?
PM: I said Australia is pursuing a regional protection framework and a regional processing centre. That was noted by the United Nations Secretary-General and I will continue, as I have bilateral meetings, be raising questions of people smuggling and people movement in our region. The reason, of course, Australia is so committed to a regional protection framework and a regional processing centre is these issues are of shared concern across our region.
JOURNALIST: What did he say, what did Ban Ki-moon say?
PM: He obviously noted that Australia has this concept of a regional protection framework and regional processing centre.
JOURNALIST: Did he think it was a good idea though, like what was his reaction?
PM: Look, he noted it. That's as far as I can take it. This is something, of course, that Australia will pursue in direct discussion with the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees, so that's the specific UN body that the very in detail discussions will be held with and of course as well as me raising these issues here in Vietnam during my bilateral discussions and at the Summit itself, our officials and the Minister for Immigration are pursuing the discussions about the protection framework and processing centre almost on a daily basis.
JOURNALIST: And what was the New Zealand Prime Minister's response to the idea?
PM: The New Zealand Prime Minister confirmed to me the response that he had given me by telephone, which is that New Zealand is interested in seeing the regional protection framework and regional processing centre further pursued. So New Zealand wants to be a participant in that dialogue, wants to be working alongside Australia as that dialogue continues.
JOURNALIST: But not on their territory?
PM: Well the dialogue of course is with East Timor.
JOURNALIST: Did Premier Wen raise any concerns about the United States joining the East Asia Summit?
PM: No, he did not.
JOURNALIST: Did he talk about the counterbalancing role that the United States might play?
PM: We talked about the East Asia Summit, about issues that will be before the Summit today, about its capacity to talk broadly across the strategic, defence and economic agenda.
JOURNALIST: What's your response to the terrorism concerns that have been raised overnight and involving Yemen?
PM: Look I'm aware of President Obama's statement on this matter and our transport security officials have moved so that there will be a comprehensive 100 percent screening of cargo coming from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Doha. There are no direct flights from Yemen to Australia, so any cargo that originated in Yemen would come through one of those three locations and there will be 100 percent screening as a response.
JOURNALIST: What do you think, like the world has to do in the area of cargo because we've put in all these security on passenger flights and travel, what do you see as the future sparked by this incident and where it will go from here?
PM: Look, I'm still digesting, obviously, the full implications of this matter and of President Obama's statement and our transport security officials will be working on it and they've put in place these immediate steps.
But when we as a nation look at transport security, whilst the public focus is on aviation security for all of the obvious reasons and as individual people's contact with the system when they board flights, we do have a range of security measures for cargo and for people and goods that move by sea. I will take any further advice arising from this incident, but I don't have that advice as yet, as you would expect.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, since you've been Prime Minister, what have you observed with China, it's had a lot of fights with a lot of countries in the region. Do you think its rise is a force for peace or why does it keep getting into all these scraps?
PM: Well, China is obviously hugely important to Australia and hugely important as a rising power in our world. It's now our largest trading partner. We obviously want to see China involved in the international system, in a rules based framework.
We believe it's very important therefore that there are opportunities like this Summit, which will bring, after the formalisation of the participation of the United States and Russia today, will bring around the one table China, the United States, the countries of our region. We think that that's a good development and one Australia pushed hard for and that kind of engagement, we believe, is important for our future, for the future of China and its role in our world.
JOURNALIST: But why do we need that? Are you concerned what the rise of China means for Australia?
PM: The reason Australia and particularly former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, so much pushed for this development, is prior to this there was no regional forum that brought together the US, China, the countries of our region, working comprehensively across the economic, strategic, political and defence relationships.
We had other meetings that dealt with parts of that, or that were differently configured. Now with the East Asia Summit, with its new membership being confirmed today, we will have around a table the US, China, working comprehensively across the full range of issues, with the countries of our region. We think that's a very important development.
JOURNALIST: What is Australia's position on the two or three big issues in the background of this meeting, the South China sea, the currency and perhaps the Senkaku Islands as well?
PM: Well, on territorial disputes and questions, our perspective is that these matters need to be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy and that's been our publicly announced position and will continue to be our position. On the outlook for the G20, questions of currency, I did talk today to Premier Wen about outlooks for the G20 and for the role it will play in dialogue about strong, sustainable, balanced growth around the world.
JOURNALIST: What sense did you get from Premier Wen about, you talk about a rules based approach, about whether China feels the need to come within that, did you get any sense of whether they're going to come to that?
PM: Well, this is the first time I've had an opportunity to sit face to face, we've enjoyed some discussions on the telephone. These question about China's role in the world are ones that Australia, at government level, at academic level, at, you know, generally amongst Australian people I think, talk about, we recognise the complexity of it, so today was a good opportunity for me to have a first discussion face to face.
JOURNALIST: These meeting are all well and good, if they don't achieve a softening of the relationship.
PM: It's only though engagement and exchange of views that you can shape perspectives for the future and that's what I was doing today.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, on your earlier overseas trip, made some comments about what brought you to politics and your interest in foreign affairs. I think the Opposition verballed you on what you said about that, but I just wonder, you're getting, as a new national leader you're being exposed more and more to this kind of global politics. What, are you warming to it, what are your thoughts about that?
PM: Well, I think my remarks were greatly over interpreted. Obviously what brought me into active politics was a passion and enthusiasm for making sure every kid got a great education and that continues to be a great driver of what I want to see our nation achieve.
As Prime Minister I participate in meetings and discussions and summits like this one, to pursue Australia's national interest. In a globalised world, our future, whether it's defence, whether it's economic, whether it's our political ties and relationships, matter. They are worked through forums like this one that I will attend today. So, I'm very happy to be here, very much enjoying it and enjoying the discussions.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister you said you've been invited to go to China, do you roughly know when that may be and have you ever been to China before?
PM: I have been to China before, Phil I'm not able to advise you of your forward travel schedule, but we'll work to find a mutually convenient time, obviously we've got to determine the Parliamentary sitting dates and a range of things before we could work that through.
JOURNALIST: Prime Minister, on a security matter, what can you tell us about the new US defence base that's to be built in WA and why is it necessary for Australia to co-operate with the United States on this front?
PM: Well, Australia's got a long standing co-operation with the United States on questions of space. Part of our long standing co-operation on defence matters and the strengths, you know, our very very important friendship with the United States. I've seen those reports. I've seen the colourful terminology used in the newspaper and I reject the characterisation that's in the newspaper.
Next weekend, of course, Australia will host AUSMIN talks which bring together Secretary of State Clinton, obviously the Defence Secretary, with our Foreign Minister, with our Defence Minister. I'll also be attending sections of that, so we'll have the opportunity to keep talking about these questions with the United States.
JOURNALIST: Can I just ask you bit about India?
PM: Really quickly, then we're going to have to go. It's not good form to be late.
JOURNALIST: What is Australia's role in balancing India, China and the US in the region?
PM: I'm not sure that's going to be a short enough answer to get me to the East Asia Summit on time. But, certainly part of the role is making sure that we've got forums like this one, a summit like this one, which enables us, with those big regional players, to be round a table for a comprehensive discussion. Thank you.