News Stories - 11 August 2006
A new brand for Australia's Television Service to the Asia Pacific region launched
Australia Network provides a three channel service to meet preferred viewing times of audiences in the Pacific, East Asia and the Indian markets.
Mr Downer launched, on 8 August, Australia's television service to the Asia Pacific with the new brand name 'Australia Network'. It will provide a three channel service to the region and features an increased news and current affairs focus.
With four dedicated correspondents reporting from New Delhi, Beijing, Jakarta and the South Pacific, Australia Network will provide an increased coverage of regional issues.
The Australia Network footprint covers 41 countries, with the service available in over 10 million homes and delivered by 158 pay television platforms.
Australia Network will deliver high quality and contemporary programs, including the best of Australian drama, lifestyle, entertainment, education and sport.
There will be an increased news and current affairs focus on the network, with a new twice weekly current affairs program 'Focus' and three evening news bulletins.
Australia Network is provided by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), who were the successful tenderer to deliver the service for the five year period till 2011. Australia Network replaces the ABC Asia Pacific Television Service (ABCAP), provided under contract by the ABC since 2001.
Australia provides more humanitarian assistance for the Middle East
The Australian Government will provide an extra $2 million to meet the needs of the civilians affected by the current conflict in the Middle East. Australia has provided a total of $7.5 million in aid so far.
The Australian Government’s international aid agency, AusAID, is providing $2 million in aid to assist civilians displaced by the current conflict:
o $1 million to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP).
o $1 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
The latest contribution builds on Australia’s earlier assistance of $5.5 million, making the total $7.5 million to support relief activities.
The WFP is the lead United Nations agency for the logistics of transporting humanitarian aid in Lebanon.
Australia’s aid will help the immediate distribution of food and water to those displaced by the fighting.
Australia’s total contribution to the WFP so far is $3 million.
The ICRC is coordinating the evacuation of the wounded and supplying hospitals with essential supplies.
Australia’s total contribution to the ICRC at present is $3 million.
Australia also donated $500,000 each to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The OCHA is managing the relief efforts on the ground.
The WHO is providing critical medical aid to those civilians caught in the current conflict.
Australia (through DFAT) has provided $500,000 to assist the Israel National Society (Magen David Adom) provide shelter, medical supplies and other humanitarian needs to those in Israel affected by the conflict.
Record year for Australian exports
Australia’s exports grew by 17 per cent in the 2005-06 financial year, to a record $192 billion.
Strong global demand for minerals and energy contributed to a 37 per cent rise in resource exports. Manufacturing exports rose 12 per cent and services exports increased by 5 per cent. Rural exports fell 2 per cent, largely due to the carryover effects of poor seasonal conditions.
Imports grew by 10 per cent to reach $209 billion. The trade deficit fell $8 billion from $24.5 billion in 2004-05 to $16.5 billion in 2005-06.
Merchandise exports in the financial year were up 25 per cent to North Asian trading partners, with a 38 per cent increase in exports to China and a 24 per cent increase in exports to Japan. Exports to ASEAN grew 13 per cent in the financial year, exports to the EU rose 34 per cent, exports to India grew 21 per cent, and exports to the US rose 3 per cent.
For the month of June 2006, Australia’s exports totalled $17.8 billion, up 8 per cent ($1.3 billion) from May, and the highest monthly level on record
News Stories - 4 August 2006
United Nations Security Council resolution on Iran
Australia welcomes the adoption by the United Nations Security Council on 31 July of a firm resolution making the suspension of all Iran’s uranium enrichment activities mandatory.
The resolution’s adoption underscores the seriousness of international concern about Iran’s nuclear activities and demonstrates the international community’s strong commitment to see these concerns resolved.
Australia welcomed the comprehensive package of incentives offered to Iran on 6 June by the EU3 (United Kingdom, France and Germany) and the United States, Russia and China and shares the deep disappointment expressed by these countries that Iran has not taken the steps required to allow negotiations to begin.
If Iran does not make use of current opportunities it will face a future of increasing isolation from the benefits of constructive international relationships.
The right choices will set Iran on the path to a future as a respected member of the international community.
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has given Iran until 31 August to suspend all enrichment and reprocessing activities before again considering this matter. In the meantime, the incentives offer made to Iran remains on the table.
Australia calls on Iran to respond positively to the resolution by reinstating a full and verifiable suspension on all enrichment and reprocessing activities and cooperate fully with IAEA.
Mr Downer attended the ASEAN meetings in Kuala Lumpur
The annual ASEAN Post Ministerial Conferences and ASEAN Regional Forum meetings provided an important opportunity for Australia to engage in constructive dialogues with Foreign Ministers from 24 countries in the Asia Pacific region and the EU High Representative.
Mr Downer attended an East Asia Summit (EAS) Foreign Ministers’ lunch, the annual ASEAN Post Ministerial Conferences (PMC) and ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) meetings in Kuala Lumpur on 26-28 July.
The EAS Foreign Ministers’ lunch provided a timely opportunity for foreign ministers from the 16 EAS member countries to discuss issues that may be considered at the next Summit in the Philippines in December 2006.
The Philippines has already indicated it would like energy security to be a focus of the 2006 Summit.
Several other topics have been prioritised by the ASEAN Secretariat including finance – we are keen to support further work on regional financial architecture.
The ASEAN PMC meetings provided an important opportunity for Ministers to exchange views on key regional and international issues, including recent developments in Burma, the Korean Peninsula and the Middle East.
Participants at these meetings were the foreign ministers from the ten ASEAN countries and ASEAN’s ten Dialogue Partners (Australia, Canada, China, EU, India, Japan, New Zealand, ROK, Russia and the US), US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice attended for the first time this year. Malaysia’s Foreign Minister, as chair, issued a press statement following the ASEAN PMC.
Mr Downer also participated in the region’s principal security forum, the ASEAN Regional Forum, engaging ASEAN and key regional players including the United States, China, Japan, India.
We were pleased that ARF ministers sent a firm message of concern to the DPRK about its nuclear and missile activities – issues clearly highly relevant to ARF’s mandate and the region’s security dynamic.
ARF Ministers endorsed a set of activities for the coming year which will broadly if incrementally advance our regional security objectives, including Australia’s proposals to co-host with Vietnam an ARF workshop on civil-military cooperation against pandemics, and with Thailand a workshop on stockpile security for small arms/light weapons and MANPADS.
Ministers issued statements on counter-terrorism and on disaster management, and approved an exercise on maritime security, areas where we consider the ARF can make a useful contribution.
Planned activities will strengthen defence participation in ARF. To reinforce this trend, Australia is planning to co-host with Indonesia a defence-led ARF exercise on responding to natural disasters.
Initiatives such as these accord with our efforts to shape the ARF as a practically-oriented body able to respond effectively to key regional security challenges.
However, the continuing challenge is to develop the ARF’s preventive diplomacy capacity, including through institutional advances. A specific initiative we had been supporting – the creation of a “friends of the Chair” mechanism failed to get endorsement at this meeting and will be on the agenda for the next cycle of intersessional meetings.
In the margins of the ARF meeting, Mr Downer participated in an informal “5 plus 5” ministerial meeting to discuss the DPRK.
The meeting included Six-Party Talks participants, less the DPRK which refused to attend, plus Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Indonesia and Malaysia.
While in Kuala Lumpur, Mr Downer also participated in the fourth meeting of the South West Pacific Dialogue hosted by Indonesia, and held bilateral meetings with counterparts from 14 countries. He and the Thai Foreign Minister jointly signed the Treaty on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters.
Mr Downer had a busy and productive program in Kuala Lumpur. This reflected that since Australia became ASEAN's first Dialogue Partner over thirty years ago, our dialogue and cooperation has evolved into a strong, mature and diverse relationship.
It also demonstrated that the annual ASEAN meetings provided a useful meeting ground for ministers from countries within and outside the South-East Asian region.