4~ AUTRALA~ ~ F 77/ 137
PRIME MINISTER
FOR PRESS
ADDRESS BY PRIME MINISTER AT DINNER IN BRUSSELS 16 JUNE 1977
I thank you for your kind words and warm welcome. It is a great
pleasure for me to visit your country, a nation with which Australia
has many interests in common, and with which we have sound and
friendly relations.
Geographically, our countries are almost as far apart as two
countries can be, and our experiences have been very different.
You have always been at the centre of international affairs. once
you were on the frontier between two hostile European powers the
cockpit of Europe. Now you are the heart and headquarters of the
European Community.
A generation ago, by contrast, Australia was situated outside the
main currents of international politics, although our fighting men
have more than once earned us a place in the peace council of the
world. We have been influenced greatly by remoteness and isolation,
by what one Australian historian has called the tyranny of distance.
These dif ferences have been lessened by changing patterns of international-
politics by technology, and by increasing interdependence.
They have always been less important than the values and interests
we share.
Belgium and Australia are among the comparatively small number of
genuinely democratic countries which exist in the world today.
Your recorded history is iftuch longer than ours. The establishment
of modern Belgium however almost coincides with the history of
European settlement in Australia; and our democratic institutions
have developed in parallel.
These institutions differ in detail, but in both cases they are
structured to make political leaders responsible to the people;
to preserve and strengthen individual liberty and provide the
conditions for enterprise and achievement. And not only have our
democratic institutions shown a broadly similar development, but
our societies and economies are much the same. Twice this century,
our two countries, along with the other democracies, have fought to
preserve their liberty. We were successful because, under challenge
we have found the will and the unity necessary to survive.
Today, the democracies face different challenges both domestic
and international the military power of authoritarian regimes is
growing; the democracies are facing a period of economic difficulty
and rapid social change; greater and sometimes unrealistic demands
are-made of democratic governments. / If the
2
If the democracies are to meet the challenges they face, they will
have to do so collectively, not in isolation. They will have to
appreciate their interdependence, state clearly and confidently their
common interests and values and formulate effective policies in
terms of them.
This world outlook should not, and cannot, be left to the great
democratic powers alone. I believe that countries like Australia and
Belgium have an important part to play. Our stake in the outcome is
as great and our responsibility is as clear. In shaping an adequate
democratic response to these challenges Belgium's role is a vital one.
Your country has been amongst the most imaginative and energetic proponents
of a united Western Europe. Given the background of centuries
of conflict, the movement towards Western European unity has been
impressive.
Australia, for her part, has given and will continue to give firm support
to the achievement of greater unity amongst Western European democracies.
The substantial progress made in the last decades perhaps makes it understandable
that Europeans have mainly concentrated on their own affairs.
But the situation that now faces us calls for an outward looking Europe
one which sees its role in global terms.
Most of the world's democracies are located in Western Europe and without
their full and active commitment the democratic view in international
affairs will be seriously attenuated.
I hope that the Community's potential for contributing to the resolution
of major international problems, to the development of the international
economic system, and to an expansion of world trade, will be fully
realised. Belgium has not only been one of the great architects of
Western European unity, but it has also been one of the strong supporters
and most active participants in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
While Australia's immediate security interests lie especially in Asia and
the Pacific, we always have been closely interested in European security
arrangements. For despite our location, we are very aware of Europe's
strategic importance and the contribution the European Community makes
to the North Atlantic community and to the present global balance. All
democracies I believe are becoming increasingly aware that national
security cannot be safeguarded in one area alone but must be looked at
on a global basis; that our strength does not lie in any one region
North America, Europe or Japa~ n but in our collective strength and will.
We need to foster this awareness and avoid narrow, exclusively regional
preoccupations to be aware of the impact of our decisions not only on
our own country, but on the rest of the world. If we do not do this
then we run the risk of damaging the interests we all have in common.
I am in the happy position of visiting a country with which we have very
good relations. We hope to see these relationships continue to grow to
the mutual benefit of both our countries. We will take every
opportunity to strengthen our relations in all respects.