The Guardian (http://www.theguardian.com)
Ten things to know about foreign policy under Julie Bishop and Tony Abbott
1. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade would become a 'powerhouse' department again
• "DFAT will resume its role as the driver of foreign policy," Bishop says. "In recent years, in part because things have been increasingly seen through the prism of national security which is a prime minister's responsibility, many foreign policy decisions have been taken over by the prime minister's office.
• "We believe DFAT should be reinstated as the typical driver of foreign policy...DFAT should be the facilitator of the national security subcommittee of cabinet rather than just being another voice around the table... it should be restored to being a powerhouse department."
• But the powerhouse would necessarily have any more money. "Of course this will all be constrained by the state of the budget," Bishop said. "Over time I would want to reorder priorities but whether it means more money depends on the budgetary constraints at the time."
2. Australia's foreign policy would be more focused on economic self-interest and on the Asia-Pacific region
• "There will be a much greater focus on our region - more Jakarta, less Geneva, as Tony Abbott puts it," said Bishop. "Our foreign policy assets - military, defence, economic, trade, diplomatic and foreign aid will be focused not exclusively but unambiguously on our region, and our focus will be on economic diplomacy. Our diplomats will be required to understand our commercial interests - and as the head ambassador, if you like, I would make trade a centre piece of my work."
3. Australia might take what it can get in stalled long-running free trade agreements
• Labor's trade minister Craig Emerson has conceded the government will now try for a narrower agriculture-based free trade agreement with China after nine years of talks on a broad ranging agreement had made little progress. Bishop says taking what was possible in free trade talks would be the Coalition's approach across the board.
• "The government has made no apparent advance on free trade agreements with China, South Korea or Japan...Our approach would be to get the best agreement we could without setting a standard that is just not achievable, to get the best agreement we could and use that as a starting point and then over time as the relationship developed and we established greater trust we could move into other areas."
4. Australia would 'again become a strong supporter of Israel'
• Bishop claims Bob Carr, the Labor foreign minister, came to the foreign affairs job fifteen months ago "telling everyone the one thing he wanted to achieve as foreign minister was to change Australia's stance on Israel." And according to Bishop, Carr succeeded when he played a leading role in overruling the prime minister's preferred position last December so that Australia abstained from the vote on upgrading the recognition of a Palestinian state, rather than voting with Israel against it, as Gillard unsuccessfully proposed. "We will return to what was previously bipartisan support for Israel," Bishop says. Gillard insisted the vote did not reflect diminished support for Israel.
5. Australian travellers might not have as easy access to consular help if they leave home without travel insurance
• Bishop says she doesn't like the idea - recently advocated by a think tank - of a small levy on all travellers to cover the cost of DFAT providing consular help to Australians who get into trouble overseas, but she says something needs to give. "I am informed many issues people go to our missions about would often be covered by travel insurance if people had it...we need to look at how many services are provided for matters that would otherwise be covered by sensible travel insurance policy," she says. She wasn't keen on compelling people to take out insurance. She would be looking at "options."
6. Former PMs might have an international role
• "I think we should consider giving successful former prime ministers a public role...I think Kevin (Rudd) has more to offer, although whether we would be in a position to offer something is another question, but in Paul Keating, Bob Hawke, John Howard, we had prime ministers that did have standing on the international stage, but unlike the United States who utilises the services of their former presidents, that has not been something we do and perhaps it should be something we give thought to," Bishop says.
7. AusAid will get a big overhaul
• Australia's $5.7 billion a year foreign aid program is in for a shake-up. "There is a problem with Ausaid," Bishop says. Money will be redirected to the region and to "practical" projects like infrastructure and away from international organisations.
• But there's no promise to reach Australia's millennium goal target of foreign aid at 0.5% of GNI any faster than Labor - which has now pushed the pledge out twice, now saying it will get there in 2017/18.
• "To meet 0.5% any sooner now, you would have to tip billions of dollars in in one year, that would be reckless, so we will review it when we get into government to see how long it would take," Bishop says.
8. The relationship with Indonesia will be better despite the widespread belief that 'turning back asylum boats is likely to make it worse'
• Bishop insists her private conversations with Indonesian officials convince her that the Coalition "can work in co-operation with Indonesia to achieve our policy aim" of turning back people smugglers boats. "Professional diplomats are paid to put particular views, but what goes on behind the scenes can be quite different," she says cryptically.
• Indonesian officials have certainly publicly put the view that the country is completely opposed to Australia turning back boats carrying asylum seekers. On Friday Indonesian Ambassador to Australia Nadjib Riphat Kesoema said Indonesia would not accept asylum seekers from turned back boats. "No such collaboration will happen between Indonesia and Australia (to) bring back the people to Indonesia," he said. Ambassador Nadjib was a guest of Abbott to hear his budget speech in reply last month and the Coalition leader said later the Ambassador's presence "demonstrated the ability of an incoming Coalition government to work successfully with Indonesia to, amongst other things, stop the boats".
9. Chinese Telco giant Huawei might get a more sympathetic hearing under the Coalition
• Labor banned Huawei from participating in tenders for the national broadband network on the advice of security agencies. Bishop describes this decision as "very odd".
• "I note that Huawei just won a contract to provide services to the New Zealand government to do some roll out for New Zealand. Clearly they assessed the security concerns. I also spoke to the intelligence community in Great Britain about Huawei and they have obviously satisfied themselves that Huawei can be involved in the roll out of their broadband. Malcolm Turnbull and I have had a briefing from intelligence agencies and of course if they continue to advise there is a problem then you take their advice. But we have said we would review whether there were any parts of the NBN where Huawei could be involved, away from the heart of the operation that is the secret squirrel stuff, if you go away from that heart there may well be contracts that could be awarded to companies including Huawei."
• 10. But Bishop speaks exactly like Bob Carr when it comes to Sri Lanka
• Bishop says she saw no evidence of current human rights abuses on a visit to Sri Lanka with Immigration spokesman Scott Morrison and Customs and Border Protection spokesman Michael Keenan in January.
• "Yes, there was a bloody end to a bloody conflict...but what I saw was what is happening on the ground now and I saw no evidence of human rights abuses now. We asked for evidence from the Tamils...we spent our first three days with them...they were not able to produce any evidence of human rights abuses."
• Asked about reports about human rights abuses Bishop said "I've read the human rights reports from human rights watch and it did not verify any of the claims, it said evidence was available but it didn't say what it was...I saw a country coming to terms with the aftermath of a bloody civil war."
• Asked about calls for a boycott of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka, she said Australia should "seek to engage and influence Sri Lanka rather than isolate it."
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