Television Interview, Sky News First Edition

SUBJECTS: ASIO Annual Threat Assessment; Chinese Naval Vessels off the Coast of Australia; Port of Darwin; Ukraine Conflict; Australia–PNG Defence Ties.

PETER STEFANOVIC, HOST: Back to our top story of state sponsored murder plots and a bid to steal our defence secrets. This isn't a movie, folks. It is part of ASIO's Annual Threat Assessment. Joining us live is the Defence Minister, Richard Marles. Richard, good to see you this morning. Thank you so much. So, once again we've got a stark warning from Mike Burgess. What do you think or why do you think Australia and Australians are so vulnerable to attacks?

RICHARD MARLES, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: Well, firstly, I wouldn't use the word vulnerable because we've got, you know, agencies which are excellent at what they do and the best in the world. And I think part of what comes out of the report, the Threat Assessment report from ASIO, is asking Australians to have a sense of confidence about ASIO, and the other security agencies that we have to meet the threat that we face. And so, that is a very important part of the Threat Assessment report. But the fundamental fact is that we live in the most challenging, in many respects the most threatening strategic circumstances that we’ve faced since the end of the Second World War. I mean, you can look around the world to see how complex it is and in many respects how volatile it is. And we don't– we're not immune from that. Because of this we are increasing our defence spending very significantly. We are significantly increasing our national capability in terms of defence. And that in turn has a number of countries looking at us and interested in what we're doing and wanting to know more through whatever means. And so, the world is a complex place right now and we do need to be vigilant in that respect. We are being that. We're making the decisions we need to make about our own defence capability, but we also needs to be making sure that we're protecting the community and we can do that, and that's what ASIO is doing.

STEFANOVIC: So, you're getting a lot of this intelligence too. You're the Defence Minister, you're the Deputy Prime Minister. Are you worried about the years ahead?

MARLES: Well, I'm not sanguine, that's for sure. And we've spoken a lot about the strategic circumstances that we face. I mean, you can look at a whole lot of work that the Government has done in this area, the Defence Strategic Review is a good example, and the same message comes through; that we live in a very complex and in many respects threatening environment, and we need to be making sure that we are prepared for that. And that preparation exists at a number of levels. It is about making sure that we have long-range capable submarines. That's what we're doing through AUKUS. But it's also about making sure that we are defending ourselves in a cyber sense, that we are defending our community through our agencies like ASIO. And we are making sure that we're doing all of that. 

STEFANOVIC: China is one such agitator and we are now seeing that off our coast. What are those three Chinese warships doing?

MARLES: Well, we are keeping close watch on them and we will be making sure that we watch every move. And whenever this mission is over on the part of the Chinese task group, we will assess everything we have seen to make a proper assessment of exactly what they were trying to achieve through this mission. I mean, I would hasten to say, of course, that they're not doing anything that is contrary to international law. As we have surveilled them from the moment that they came close to Australia, they have been abiding by international law. But there is no doubt that this is, not unprecedented, but an unusual event. And just as they have a right to be in international waters, which is what they are doing, we have a right to be prudent and to make sure that we are surveilling them, which is what we are doing. So, you know, early on here I instructed that we needed to have assets, our own frigates and air assets, making sure that we are watching every move that they take.

STEFANOVIC: Are they a threat?

MARLES: Well, they're not a threat in the sense that they are engaging in accordance with international law. But it is important that we understand exactly what is happening here and we will make sure that we look at every move they make to have a very clear assessment of what this on the part of the Chinese is seeking to achieve.

STEFANOVIC: Just on topic of China, you've said that you're now considering the issue of China's 99 year lease of the Port of Darwin. Was that a request made from Pete Hegseth during your recent meeting with him?

MARLES: No, that's something that we've been talking about from the get go. I mean, it’s no secret that when we were in– 

STEFANOVIC: Did Pete Hegseth raise it?

MARLES: No. When we were in opposition, we raised concerns about this sale and we've been saying from the outset that this was a matter that we would put under consideration and we are.

STEFANOVIC: Ok. Now to this stunning attack, Richard, from Donald Trump to Volodymyr Zelenskyy overnight, in which Zelenskyy was essentially called corrupt. Do you think Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a dictator?

MARLES: Well, no, but I'm also not about to engage in a running commentary of President Trump's remarks. Look, we obviously, and I think the world obviously welcomes any efforts to bring about peace. The war in Ukraine has seen a very significant loss of life over what's coming up to three years. Having said that, it can't be peace on any terms. And to be clear, I don't think America is saying that either. It is really important that we are empowering Ukraine in this process. And we've said from the outset, and we continue to say that this conflict can only be resolved on Ukraine's terms. The aggressor here is Russia. They were the ones who illegally crossed into Ukraine, who invaded Ukraine. That is why we are supporting Ukraine. We see that what's stake here is the global-rules based order. We will continue to support Ukraine.

STEFANOVIC: Yet Donald Trump is not saying any of that.

MARLES: Well, again, I'm not about to give you a running commentary on what President Trump is saying. The Australian position is that we see that the global rules‑based order is under threat by what Russia did in respect of Ukraine. That is why we have provided the better part of a billion and a half dollars in support to Ukraine and we will continue to support Ukraine so that they are able to resolve this conflict on their terms. And we all want to see peace, of course, but peace cannot be there on any terms. It must be in terms where Ukraine is empowered and where they can resolve it on their terms.

STEFANOVIC: Is Australian peacekeepers on the ground in Ukraine being discussed at the moment, Minister?

MARLES: Look, it's not being discussed and I'm not going– there's a lot of water to go under the bridge before we get to that point. And so I'm not about to speculate on all of that. Really, what we need to be doing is standing with Ukraine right now, and that's the Australian position and that's exactly what we are doing.

STEFANOVIC: I've gone over time, but I know you're in Brisbane to arrange closer ties with PNG. Just 30 seconds if you can, Richard, on what you're doing there today.

MARLES: Well, we hope to begin the process of negotiating a defence treaty with PNG. We have a Status of Forces Agreement which dates right back to 1977 but the world has changed a lot since then, and we're doing so much more with PNG. Actually, I think there is something quite exciting which is in offer in terms of the conversations that I'll be having with my counterpart, Minister Billy Joseph. So I'm really looking forward to this. There are really great things that our two countries are doing together, and if we can get this done, it'll be a big step forward in our national security.

STEFANOVIC: Good to have you with us on what appears to be a beautiful day there in beautiful Brisbane. Richard Marles, thank you. We'll chat to you again soon.

MARLES: Beautiful day in Brisbane.

ENDS