PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Ladies and gentlemen it is a real honour for me to be here with Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Obviously we have had the G20 in Brisbane over the last two days. I think it has been a very successful meeting. I think there are good outcomes for the world in terms of inclusive growth and jobs.
But I am now moving to a series of important bilateral visits and I really am thrilled to have Chancellor Markel here in Australia, in Sydney, for the first visit by a German Chancellor to our country in some 16 years.
Chancellor Merkel has been the outstanding European leader of the last decade. Germany is of course the economic locomotive of Europe and Europe is the world’s largest economic grouping. So, we really are honoured to have a world leader of Chancellor Markel’s stature here in Australia.
The relationship between Australia and Germany is strong and warm but I think it could be better developed. There are almost a million Australians of German ancestry. We’ve got a strong two-way trade but it can be stronger. We've got strong two-way investment but it could be bigger and to that end the Chancellor and I have agreed to establish a joint working group that will look at how we not only deepen the relationship between Australia and Germany but see how our two countries can cooperate better in the Indo- Pacific region.
Also, of course, we are both interested in the cause of freer trade more generally. As many of you would know, we spent much time in Brisbane talking about how we can achieve freer trade more generally, we'd all like multilateral trade deals. Let's hope it's not 20 years before the next multilateral trade deal under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation. In the meantime we are looking at more bilateral deals and I'm very much looking forward to opening soon discussions between Australia and the European Union on a free trade agreement.
So, it's an honour to have Chancellor Merkel in our country. It was a thrill to be able to show her something of the sights of Sydney – albeit briefly. This is a gorgeous, captivating, even intoxicating, city. I mean that in the very best sense and it's terrific to be here with Angela under these circumstances.
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:
Thank you. Allow me first of all to thank Tony Abbott and in fact also the Australian people for the very gracious hospitality of which we received during the G20 meeting. I think it was a very successful summit meeting and that was primarily also due to the excellent presidency, to the excellent preparation of that summit. Allow me, if I may, to say thank you also to the many young people, to the volunteers who participated, in preparing all these meeting and who were also here on the ground to help us. It was a great feat of organisation and we felt very much at home.
After Brisbane I feel great to be in Sydney. I think it is a wonderful experience. Quite often on New Year’s Eve we see the fireworks over Sydney, we see these beautiful images of the Sydney Opera House, but to see it with our own eyes obviously is quite a different thing and tomorrow I will have the opportunity to see a number of institutions and also the Opera House.
In regards to our partnership, the strategic partnership between our two countries, I think that we were able to say today that it is true we share the same values, we have excellent bilateral relations, a friendship, all of those areas in which this is working well however can be built on, can be enhanced.
There are a lot of Germans who, as you know, come here for a working holiday. Australia is also a very attractive country for tourists. We have a broad base of scientific cooperation, we have economic cooperation but I think we also share a lot of views as to the nature and dimension of international challenges. This is why in all of our talks the fight against Islamic State loomed large on the agenda. Just as how we view the situation in Russia, the development in China, in Japan and in many other parts of the world.
I would say for us, or let’s say for me personally, seen from a European vantage point; it is very interesting to see this different perspective looking of countries of Asia from a different vantage point. So, I think it’s highly interesting and there are a lot of reasons to deepen the dialogue between our two countries also through all levels of society.
So, I am very pleased that we will be able to set up this working group. They will explore areas where we can do more in the future, not only in the political area, but it can also be in the social area.
Thank you yet again for the gracious hospitality Tony and thank you for allowing me to be here.
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Well, I think we have a couple of questions from the German media and then we’ll have a few local questions.
QUESTION:
Madam Chancellor, here in the Pacific area we see an enormous dynamism as you glance, for example, at free trade agreements that are in the planning phase. What does that mean for the European and American plans for [inaudible]. We understand there were talks in Brisbane on this matter. Have you any tangible result that came out of that? Any agreement?
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:
Let me say first, it is true this is a highly dynamic region, particularly in regards to the question as to how China is going to react. It is very interesting to see how many Asian countries already have free trade agreements with China. We see a whole host of interlacing agreements criss-crossing agreements, particularly since the international strand unfortunately has bobbed down. We now see the United States of America agreeing with India, for example, in the context of the Bali context but we are far away from a comprehensive multilateral agreement.
So, I can only say we should do everything we can and make it an all-out effort not to be left behind as Europeans. We ought to pursue transparency negotiations, we ought to show that we take the concerns of people seriously and their anxieties but we ought to try to move to rapid and determined negotiations.
So, that was the purpose also of the meeting today of President Barack Obama with the members of the European Union and the member states of the union that were present. We wanted to reaffirm that we want [inaudible], but we used this also to discuss how we can allow for a very high degree of transparency which is expected from us but at the same time we don’t allow our negotiating position to be completely shot to pieces. The world isn’t waiting for Europe and for us – the world is acting in regards to free trade agreements in the very clear sense of the word they are moving to action.
QUESTION:
Just a double barrel question, if I may, can I get your response to the latest Islamic State video which is showing the apparent beheading of Peter Kassig, the hostage and aid worker? And secondly were you able to enlist the Chancellor’s support in your efforts to get Vladimir Putin to apologise for, and compensate for, the shooting down of MH17
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Look, we all know that the ISIL death cult is utterly barbaric, utterly barbaric, and beheadings are part of their stock in trade. We have seen a gruesome catalogue of beheadings, of crucifixions of mass executions, of sexual slavery since the ISIL death cult started to consolidate its hold in Eastern Syria and Northern Iraq.
So, this is an unspeakable entity. I don’t have any confirmation of the authenticity of any new video so I don’t want to comment on specifics just to say that this is a death cult. It can’t be dignified with any other title. That is what it is – a death cult. It has nothing to do with religion, it is a travesty of a state, it mocks God, it mocks Islam. As I said, it is nothing but a death cult and one of the many reasons why we are fiercely taking action against this death cult at home and abroad is because it is a threat not just for the people of the region but everywhere. It has declared war on the world and that is why there needs to be an appropriate response.
On the second question that you asked, I am not going to go into detail of who said what to whom but I do want to thank Chancellor Markel for the support that she has given to Australia from the very beginning when it comes to the MH17 atrocity. I spoke very early on to the Chancellor because no one understands Eastern Europe better than she does, no one understands the complexities and the difficulties of the situation on the ground in Eastern Europe, better than the Chancellor and I have to say I have benefited very much from her counsel. As for Australia’s position on MH17, it is well known I have expressed it many times over the last few days and I don’t want to add to it now.
QUESTION:
I have a question addressed to both of you respectively. Madam Chancellor can you tell us a little bit about the content of your talk yesterday with Vladimir Putin, also how it came about that Jean-Claude Juncker participated in this and by whose initiative this came about? And a question addressed to Prime Minister Abbott, after the announcement of Barack Obama to earmark $3 billion into the climate fund will you rethink your position? Will you also pay into the fund?
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:
I had already pointed out to you that there will be such a meeting with the Russian President before it actually happened. We addressed in general terms and very comprehensively the origins and the nature of this conflict. These were confidential talks so I will not go into any detail on this today.
I have said repeatedly that I think it is most important to seize any opportunity there is for having a dialogue or having a conversation. There is a very close coordination among the Europeans in the way we deal with Ukraine and with Russia, which then led to a situation where we also exchanged on who was going to talk to whom and when. Out of that came clearly that Jean-Claude Juncker said he as EU Commission President also wanted to have a talk with President Putin. So, there was overlap if you like. We have no secrets with each other and I was there, he came, so I didn’t think it would be polite to let him stand and wait outside the room. So, we had for a time a meeting among the three of us and he knows the Russian President very well from his previous capacities so the two of them went on with their meeting then afterwards.
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Thank you so much for the question.
All of us want to take a strong and effective action against climate change. Climate change is real, humanity does have an impact here, a significant impact, and we have got to take strong and effective action. Different countries are taking different actions of course. Australia recently passed through our Parliament, legislation that amongst other things will provide for the establishment of an emissions reduction fund – a domestic emissions reduction fund to the tune of $2.55 billion over the coming four years.
So, this is quite a substantial fund. We also have a clean energy finance cooperation which was established by the former government and there is $10 billion in capital which has been allocated to this. In addition to those two funds a proportion of our overseas aid, particularly in the Pacific, is allocated for various environmental schemes including schemes to deal with climate change.
So, we are doing a very great deal and I suppose given what we are doing we don’t intend, at this time, to do more. But certainly, what we are doing is very substantial and our commitment on emissions reduction, five per cent on 2000 figures by 2020 is one way of putting it, but against business as usual it is actually a 19 per cent reduction which is a substantial reduction in anyone’s language and we will achieve this. Unlike some countries which have made commitments but not met them – we will meet this commitment which as I say is 19 per cent on business as usual.
Now, do we have another Australian question? I think we should have another German question then and that will probably do us.
QUESTION:
Will Climate change also be part of your conversations here? What can you do together against climate change?
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:
Well, yesterday we had a whole meeting during the G20 summit devoted to climate which was a very interesting debate and strong on detail which is also now addressed as yet again. So, we actually talked twice already about this. François Hollande during the summit today pointed out, yet again, that next year he will host a conference in Paris and that he very much hoped and expected from his colleagues in the G20 group to help him for this being a successful conference. Because a second Copenhagen conference is something we all cannot afford which is why this meeting today was very helpfully because François, it gave François the opportunity that I am sure he couldn’t start preparatory work only three weeks before and it was very helpful. Also, what the United States agreed on with China and again loomed large on the agenda of today’s meeting.
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Alright, better have a second Australian question.
QUESTION:
Just on climate change, will Australia be in a position to make a commitment post 2020 in the first quarter of next year as the communique suggest?
PRIME MINISTER ABBOTT:
Well, we will certainly be making our position absolutely crystal clear well in advance of the various conferences that are taking place next year. Particularly the Paris conference but if I could just perhaps add to something that Angela has just said. We have had a lot of discussion over the last two days on many subjects, the focus has been inclusive growth and jobs but climate has certainly been amongst the subjects discussed.
I was really pleased today that the climate discussion was in the context of a session devoted to energy efficiency because there are 1.3 billion people around our globe – one fifth of the world’s population that don’t have access to electricity. Now, how can these people lead a decent life? How can those people live the kind of life that people in Germany and Australia take for granted, without access to power?
So, we do have to expand access to power and the only way to make power more available, to make electricity more available and at the same time address the emissions issue is if we tackle energy efficiency.
Now, obviously, for decades to come, coal is going to be an important energy source. It needs to be because it is abundant, it is affordable, it is accessible and we need to work on very efficient energy including energy from coal if we are serious – fair dinkum as we say in Australia – if we are serious about ensuring that not only do we tackle the issue of climate but we also tackle the development issues particularly in those countries where people are crying out to have the sort of life which people in Germany and Australia take for granted.
So, thank you so much everyone. Really appreciate you being here.
[ends]