Television Interview, Channel 7

Subject/s: NATO Summit; US Presidential Election; Indo-Pacific Four; Australia’s additional support for Ukraine. 

DAVID WOIWOD: Mr Marles, you met with the President earlier today, we've seen some pictures, you seemed to be having a really good time with him today. What was spoken about in that very brief encounter? And how did you find him?

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, RICHARD MARLES: Well, the President was making clear his appreciation for the partnership that we have within the United States in the Indo-Pacific, not just with Australia, but obviously with Korea, with Japan, with New Zealand. And that we are partners together in maintaining the rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific, a part of the world where that is under pressure. And I think we very much appreciate our partnership with America and he was making it clear he appreciated their partnership with us. 

WOIWOD: We have to ask about it, because it is the dominating topic at the moment. But what was his demeanour like? How did he present? 

MARLES: The President was absolutely fine and he's very much been a huge supporter of the relationship with Australia, as you would expect. And the point I'd make is that America’s presence right now in the Indo-Pacific is as great and significant as it's ever been. And for us, we deeply appreciate that and certainly, that was something I conveyed to the President. 

WOIWOD: But surely this crisis engulfing his candidacy and his campaign right now has been a topic of discussion amongst the leaders that you've spoken to, the Indo-Pacific leaders included in that?

MARLES: There will be matters that play out in America and really, it's not our business. What is our focus is the challenges that we face within our region and what matters is the way we're engaging with America in terms of meeting those challenges. And we couldn't be happier with the way in which we are engaging with America. I certainly say that in relation to my counterpart, Secretary Austin, but we couldn't be happier in terms of the way in which we've engaged with the President as well. 

WOIWOD: Have these talks taken on a sense of urgency though, to try and perhaps future proof any decisions, or as it's been called ‘Trump proof’, the alliances and these bolt ons? 

MARLES: Again, I wouldn't characterise it like that. Whatever plays out in America will play out in an election year. We understand–  

WOIWOD: But it must be a fear, given what Donald Trump has said in the past about this Alliance? 

MARLES: Well, we are– we have a sense of confidence about the Alliance, about our equities within the Alliance across the political spectrum in America. And we have that confidence because at the end of last year, for example, when a package of AUKUS legislation was presented to the Congress, it was supported across the political spectrum that included Democrats and Republicans and included Trump Republicans. And so we do have a sense of confidence that whatever transpires in November, which is fundamentally the business of the American people, our Alliance with America will remain strong, the progress of AUKUS will continue and our equities will be maintained. 

WOIWOD: But what about the future of these other alliances?

MARLES: Oh, well, I think we feel the same in relation to that. And again, we have been working very closely with our partners in the Indo-Pacific, as I said earlier today, if you look at countries like Korea, Japan, and New Zealand they are the countries with whom we have the greatest strategic alignment. And part of that is that for all of us, our key alliance partner is the United States, we have that in common. We also have in common the challenges that we face within the Indo-Pacific around the maintenance of the rules-based order issues, such as freedom of navigation in places like the South China Sea. And so, you know, all of us are working very closely together, we see that and we all see that we have an interest in American engagement in our region and we feel very comfortable with how that's going. 

WOIWOD: A raft of assistance today for President Zelenskyy and his country as well. How was that received?

MARLES: That was received well. This is the biggest package that we've announced to date in support of Ukraine, $250 million, which is focused on integrated air and missile defence, which has very much been a priority that's been articulated by the Ukrainian government. And so we've sought in our engagement with Ukraine to really be responsive to their needs. I think it was very well received. Of course, the other members of the Indo Pacific Four have also been making their contributions to Ukraine. So when as a group before we met with President Zelenskyy I think there was a high degree of warmth that was being expressed by the President for what we are doing. But we also made clear that we are going to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes for Ukraine to resolve this conflict on its terms. And that was a message that was very well received by the President. 

WOIWOD: Did he give any sense of lessons learned should that– what happened to Ukraine actually happened in our backyard, in the Indo-Pacific? 

MARLES: Well, I think again, as we've repeatedly said, the moment that we saw a no limits agreement signed between China and Russia on the eve of Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine was a moment when this conflict would have significant impact or relevance for us in the Indo-Pacific. I think we're all very mindful that lessons will be learned around the world, but in our region, coming out of what occurs in Ukraine. And really, that's a way of saying that what's at stake in Ukraine is the maintenance of the global rules-based order, we do feel it under pressure in the Indo-Pacific. But of course, it's been flagrantly violated by Russia in Ukraine. And so the Ukrainians are, you know, obviously fighting for their own country, but in so many ways, they're on the front line of fighting for all of us in the maintenance of that global rules-based order. 

WOIWOD: Will you be watching the President's press conference this afternoon?

MARLES: No, I think I've got a series of other meetings between now then. 

WOIWOD: How important do you think it is, though, this performance today?

MARLES: I'm not going to get into all that. These are really matters for the American domestic system to deal with– 

WOIWOD: Despite the huge knock on effects they could have for Australian security and foreign policy? 

MARLES: But the point I would continue to make is that across administrations, multiple administrations over decades, our Alliance has been very strong with the United States, we've seen ongoing American leadership. We've made the point that under the Biden Administration we have very much seen that American leadership in our region now and we couldn't be happier with that and we work very well with the Biden Administration. I'm not about to comment on American domestic politics, it is a matter for them. But we continue to work very closely with America as partners in our region.