I acknowledge the First Australians on whose land we meet, and whose cultures we celebrate as among the oldest continuing cultures in human history.
This is very much our welcome to country. And to our friends from Vietnam, I say the following: [In Vietnamese: welcome, General Secretary Manh, to Australia].
This is my attempt to welcome our guests in Vietnamese to Australia.
General Secretary, you are a welcome guest in our country.
Your nation too is one of ancient cultures. Vietnam has a proud and distinct history that stretches back across the millennia.
Your history has had its times of challenge.
But the people of Vietnam have triumphed over the centuries.
And they have established the modern, independent nation that you represent today.
On behalf of the Government of Australia, I want to say that we recognise the achievements of your nation and your people.
It is now more than 36 years since Australia and Vietnam established diplomatic relations.
Under our former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam, the then Australian Government took the lead among Western nations in establishing our official relationship.
It was a wise move.
It was a welcome move.
And history has shown that it was the right move.
Over the past 36 years the ties between our two nations have grown remarkably.
Our two nations and the world have changed a lot in those intervening years.
The Cold War has finished.
Globalisation has reached never before seen heights.
In our own region, the Asia-Pacific region, we have seen stability and great prosperity.
Throughout the region, hundreds of millions of people have been lifted out of poverty as each nation has developed and, in doing so, spurred the development of other nations in the region.
Vietnam's own economic development has been one of the great success stories of the past decade.
The percentage of people living in poverty has fallen from nearly 60 per cent to less than 15 per cent in only 15 years.
With a greater embrace of the international market place, Vietnam's economy has been transformed.
I recognise Mr General Secretary your role in helping to drive these reforms.
I am also pleased that Australia has been able to play a part in Vietnam's economic development.
Through our overseas development assistance, we partner with the government and the people of Vietnam to help build a better future.
Our assistance is targeted towards supporting Vietnam's engagement with the global economy, building infrastructure, improving water and sanitation, building capacity in the public and private sectors, and working together on the response to climate change.
These are all long-term challenges.
But they are challenges that are critical to the future Vietnam, and critical, also, to the future of Australia. We are pleased that we are partnering with you in these critical challenges of the future.
I would also like to acknowledge the important role played by the Vietnamese community in Australia, in its contribution to Australia's economy and the richness of our multicultural society, and in its contribution to the relationship between our two nations.
Today, our meeting has, I believe, set the course for the relationship between our countries for the period ahead.
We have issued a Joint Statement and we have witnessed the signing of the Comprehensive Partnership.
These documents provide a clear framework for the future development of this important relationship.
They outline the shared challenges we will face.
And they commit us to working even more closely together in our response to these challenges.
Our discussions today, General Secretary, covered areas from political visits to cooperation in security and defence. Also, furthering and deepening our economic relationship, trade, investment, and of course, expanding our education ties.
I believe we have a rich agenda ahead of us, for the future.
In the years ahead, I look forward to working with you and the government and people of Vietnam to realise the aspirations in those documents, and to realise the full potential of our relationship.
The relationship between Australia and Vietnam is not just a bilateral matter.
We are both important countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
We are both committed to making a strong contribution to the stability and prosperity of our region.
I look forward to continuing our discussions on the future of our region.
How we shape the future of our region in 2020 and beyond is a question that we have to begin to address now.
I thank Vietnam for its support for the ongoing discussions about an Asia-Pacific community.
Your support is a clear reflection of the shared interests we have in making the 21st century - the century of the Asia Pacific - a truly Pacific, or peaceful, century.
There is also history to our relationship that pre-dates the establishment of formal diplomatic ties.
We acknowledge the impact of Vietnam War had on Vietnam; we acknowledge the impact of that war on the people of Vietnam, and on the landscape of Vietnam.
Australia is a committed partner in helping heal those wounds.
Just as we are committed to healing the wounds of those from Australia who served.
On behalf of the Australian Government, I want to thank the government and the people of Vietnam for the support that we have received in locating and repatriating the last two Australians who were unaccounted for from the Vietnam War.
Flying Officer Michael Herbert and Pilot Officer Robert Carver were repatriated just last week - the last two Australians to return home.
Australia is committed to assisting Vietnam with its search for its own officers missing in action. This is a humane thing to do, and I express my appreciation to the government in Hanoi to the great assistance they've given us in this most sensitive of tasks.
Our relationship now is about the future.
And to build that shared future, I am a strong believer in the importance of education.
I am pleased that Australia is a leading education destination for Vietnamese students.
So far this year there have been more than 20,000 enrolments in Australian courses, and around 17,000 students studying in Australia.
Vietnamese students are welcome guests in our nation.
And we are committed to ensuring that they have a positive and rewarding experience on every level - educational, social and cultural.
The Australian Government is supporting this with concrete action.
Australia is also the leading provider of scholarships to Vietnamese students.
I am very pleased that we can make this contribution to equipping students with the skills and knowledge to drive the change that Vietnam needs for its future.
So far, the number of scholarships offered by the Australian Government to Vietnam has been increased to 175, up 25 since this Government assumed office. I was pleased to inform the General Secretary today that we'll increase that by a further 50 scholarships, from next year. In other words, since our Government assumed office, there has been an increase in the number of scholarships offered to Vietnam by 50%.
I regard this as a practical and positive measure to underline this operation between our two countries. And to underline the absolute importance of education.
General Secretary Manh, yours is the first visit by a General Secretary since Prime Minister Paul Keating welcomed General Secretary Doc Moi in 1995.
Both our nations have changed a great deal in those nearly 15 years.
And one of the great changes has been the growing strength and the real sense of shared interests between our two nations.
With your visit, we can begin a new phase in the relationship.
We can bring new depth and focus to our relationship.
Your visit is providing us with the catalyst to do that.
And I share your commitment to building on the strength of what we already have.
Mr General Secretary, you are a genuine friend, a genuine welcome guest in our country.
I wish you all the best for your visit here in Australia. I look forward very much to seeing you in Vietnam, at a time which suits both of our calendars, for the future.
I celebrate the relationship between us. I look forward to it attaining new heights in the future.
I thank you.