The start of the week saw Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Defence Minister Linda Reynolds meet with their American counterparts – Defence Secretary Mark Esper (who’s only just started in the job) and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as part of AUSMIN talks. America is asking Australia to consider joining the coalition of navies in the Middle East, protecting oil tankers from interference from the Iranians, which is still being mulled over.
There are also rumours that the USA might ask Australia to play host to some mid-range missile batteries in the future – as a way to counter China. While Payne and Pompeo gave non-answers at an event after the AUSMIN meetings, Linda Reynolds has said that in discussions with Pompeo and Esper that they have denied that they want Australia to host missiles. Most foreign policy experts believe that the denial could be temporary, and we will have to see if the Americans ask us in the future. This is also leading to questions about how our relationships with our strategic partners like the USA, will balance with the relationships we have with our trading partners like China.
Meanwhile, Canning MP Andrew Hastie has gotten himself in hot water over comments he made in a column about China this week. He suggested that the West had misjudged China and it’s growth and expansion, drawing parallels with the French misjudging the rise of Nazi Germany before World War Two. Aside from the fact he invoked Godwin’s Law, Hastie also got told off by the Chinese government – who said he had a “Cold War mentality”. He’s also receiving mixed reviews from his colleagues, with Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese and Finance Minister Matthias Cormann saying Hastie’s comments were inflammatory and ill-advised, while Scott Morrison has pulled the “He’s a backbencher, he can say what he wants” card. While Hastie is a backbencher, he is also the chair of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security. Some argue that this means he should know better than to make comments like that, while some wonder if he was trying to get himself a headline or some attention.
It appears that a second government agency was involved in the investigation that led to the raid on ABC offices a few months ago. Centre Alliance Senator Rex Patrick asked for information on the raids from the Australian Federal Police (AFP) under Freedom of Information Laws. However, the AFP declined, saying that an agency exempt under the Freedom of Information Act was involved. The only agencies that are exempt are Australia’s intelligence agencies, both domestic and international. Rex Patrick believes this means that either the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD) or the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) were involved in the investigation into how the ABC’s reporter Dan Oakes got hold of the documents that helped him put together the news stories known as The Afghan Files.
This week’s Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting had one major outcome – the agreement that all states would cease to send their recyclables overseas. It won’t happen instantly, as each state has to work on the change individually and find ways to ensure that the recyclables actually get recycled and don’t just get dumped in landfill or the ocean.
Also this week, the NSW Lower House passed abortion legislation, but it still has to get through the Upper House. If successful, this legislation will bring NSW’s abortion laws into line with pretty much every other state in Australia.
Tweet of the Week
This week, it’s technically an Instagram post. This week saw snowfalls in Victoria, the ACT and New South Wales – including the Blue Mountains region just outside of Sydney.
Things I’ve Been Looking at Online
The toddler at the Garma Festival that stole the show – ABC Online
Laura Tingle on if the Morrison government knows how to deal with China – ABC Online
The Aged Care Royal Commission hears recommendations are ignored – ABC Online
Kara L 