Speeches, Statements and Media Interviews

"A New Era of Engagement with the World"

The Hon Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs

19 August 2008
Speech DFAT_20080819

On 19 August 2008, the Honourable Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs, gave a speech entitled "A New Era of Engagement with the World" at the Sydney Institute and spoke about Australiafs comprehensive foreign policy and its engagement in multilateral cooperative frameworks.

The Asia-Pacific region has experienced rapid economic growth and has become increasingly important within the international community. Australia's engagement with the region is expected to increase in the future and in June this year, Australia proposed the Asia-Pacific Community initiative. Comprehensive engagement with the region constitutes one of the three pillars of Australia's foreign policy which is based on democratic values, respect for the rule of law and tolerance. The second pillar, Australia's alliance with the United States, remains the fundamental and indispensable bedrock of Australia's security, strategic and defence arrangements.

Australia intends to make a difference as a good international citizen by working on issues that require cooperation on a global scale including climate change, international terrorism and energy security. To achieve this goal, Australia has established active engagement with the United Nations and other multilateral organisations as the third pillar of its foreign policy.

For the full text of the speech, please see the following link.
http://www.foreignminister.gov.au/speeches/2008/080819_si.html