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Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Richard Marles and Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong will today welcome the UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs the Rt Hon David Lammy MP and Secretary of State for Defence the Rt Hon John Healey MP to Sydney for Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN).   Australia and the United Kingdom have a deep and enduring partnership, grounded in our shared history, values and interests. 

JULIE BISHOP            Defence Minister Payne and I are truly delighted to welcome Ministers Marsudi and Ryacudu here for the purposes of our annual 2-Plus-2 meeting. Indeed, we noted that it’s the third time that four ministers have been taking part in our 2-Plus-2 meeting.

Today marks the 20th Anniversary of the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR1325) – Women, Peace and Security. The growing role of women in military and peacekeeping operations around the world is critical to Australia’s national security and to global security. Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon Linda Reynolds CSC, said the landmark resolution recognised the importance of women’s equal participation in the maintenance and promotion of peace and security.

Minister for Defence Personnel Dan Tehan today announced the Coalition Government had honoured its 2016 election commitment that all personnel leaving the Australian Defence Force (ADF) would have access to their necessary personal documentation prior to discharge to facilitate a smooth transition to civilian life.

The Australian and Indonesian Defence Ministers met in Indonesia today for the annual Australia-Indonesia Defence Ministers’ Meeting, an important part of a strong partnership and commitment to regional challenges. Minister for Defence, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP, who co-chaired the meeting with Indonesia’s Minister for Defence, Ryamizard Ryacudu, said they discussed common interests in the Indo-Pacific region, enhancing maritime security and cyber cooperation, and identifying further areas of regional collaboration including through Our Eyes and tri-lateral patrols.

Secretary of State Michael Pompeo, Defense Secretary James Mattis, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, and Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne met at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California July 23-24, 2018.  The Secretaries and Ministers noted a number of initiatives through which the people of the United States and Australia, close friends and partners for more than a century, will work together to build a secure, prosperous future.  Over the next year, the United States and Australia intend to: 

The annual Australia-Vietnam Defence Ministers’ Meeting was held in Sydney today. The meeting focused on shared regional interests and challenges, and celebrated 20 years of bilateral defence relations. Minister for Defence, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP co-chaired the meeting with Vietnam’s Minister for Defence, General Ngo Xuan Lich. The Ministers discussed the strategic challenges in the Indo-Pacific region and opportunities for enhancing defence cooperation, including maritime security.

Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon Marise Payne, will visit Singapore on 1 and 2 June to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue alongside key counterparts and defence officials from over 40 nations. “The Shangri-La Dialogue is the largest and most important annual gathering of defence ministers, defence force chiefs and senior security officials from across the Indo-Pacific region,” Minister Payne said. 

Minister for Defence and Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Joint Release The Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon Marise Payne, and the Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Senator the Hon Matt Canavan, today announced the appointment of Dr Gordon de Brouwer PSM to lead the 2018 Review of the Woomera Prohibited Area (WPA) coexistence framework.

With 698 exhibitors and over 340 aircraft on display, this year’s Australian International Airshow (AIA19) will be the biggest airshow in the Southern Hemisphere, and Australia’s biggest expo to date.  Minister for Defence, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP said he was pleased to support the event held at Avalon Airport, which is open to the public from 1-3 March 2019.

The Minister of Defense of Japan, Mr. Kono Taro, and Australian Minister for Defence, Senator Linda Reynolds, committed to driving bilateral defence cooperation forward during Minister Reynolds’ first official visit to Tokyo on 20 November 2019. They emphasized that as Indo-Pacific security dynamics became more challenging, the strategic logic underpinning Japan-Australia cooperation was only getting stronger.

Introduction Some six months into my tenure as Minister for Defence, it is my privilege to deliver my first Ministerial Statement on the Defence portfolio. Today I will provide an overview of the global, regional and domestic operations of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). Australia’s security environment is the most challenging it has been for many decades. We face an increasingly multipolar and competitive world in which consensus is becoming more difficult to achieve.

Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Melissa Price MP today released the fourth edition of the Australian Military Sales Catalogue, now titled Australian Defence Sales Catalogue.The 2020 Catalogue showcases leading-edge Australian products, technology and services, which are available for export from Australia’s world-class defence industry sector.Minister Price said 170 Australian businesses are featured in this year’s edition - a 49 per cent increase from the previous edition.

The Minister of Defense of Japan, Mr KISHI Nobuo, and the Australian Minister for Defence, Senator Linda Reynolds, met in Tokyo on 19 October 2020 to continue to build close bilateral defence and security ties in support of an Indo-Pacific region that is free and open, secure, inclusive and prosperous. This was Minister Reynolds’ second official visit to Tokyo and the Ministers’ first face-to-face meeting as counterparts. Undertaking such a meeting at this challenging time is testament to the value and strength of the Japan-Australia Special Strategic Partnership.

Joint media release Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Melissa Price MP   Defence Scientist, Dr Sylvie Perreau, has been awarded the 2020 Minister’s Award for Achievement in Defence Science, for her excellence in signal processing and wireless networks within highly classified environments both nationally and internationally.

Australian defence industry businesses across the country are being encouraged to submit their applications for inclusion in the 2021 Australian Defence Sales Catalogue. Defence Industry Minister Melissa Price said Defence was opening the submission process for the Australian Defence Sales Catalogue early as part of the Morrison Government’s strategy to assist Australian small business. “The catalogue showcases world-class Australian defence industry products and services, and is pivotal to the work of Australian Defence Attaches across the globe,” Minister Price said.

Minister for Defence Industry Melissa Price is encouraging Australian defence industry businesses to lodge their applications for the 2022 Australian Defence Sales Catalogue. Now in its sixth edition, the catalogue – which helps promote Australian defence industry companies and their products around the world – features an export support section to help boost companies’ competitiveness.

I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, the Whadjuk Noongar people and pay my respects to their Elders – past, present and emerging – thanks for that welcome Aunty Viv.  As the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and Minister for Defence Personnel, I also pay my respects to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women who have served our nation in the past and continue to do so.

Applications for inclusion in the 2023 edition of the Australian Defence Sales Catalogue are open to Australian defence industry companies. Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Pat Conroy MP, is encouraging Australian defence industry businesses to showcase their products and services to the world.

SUBJECTS: Shangri-La; Defence Budget; Recruitment; America, Ukraine

The Albanese Government is committed to driving export opportunities for Australian defence industry and looking for opportunities to embed them into the global supply chain.

The Albanese Government has boosted Defence spending to deliver the 2024 National Defence Strategy and build an integrated, focused force that is ready to deter potential threats. 

Today, the Albanese Government has released the inaugural National Defence Strategy, which sets out a fundamentally new approach to the defence of Australia and our interests. Developed in response to last year’s Defence Strategic Review, the 2024 National Defence Strategy outlines the Government’s strategic framework to guide the significant and urgent changes required to address Australia’s challenging strategic circumstances. 

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, Richard Marles, will attend elements of the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington DC, United States from 9 – 11 July.  As a non-NATO member, Australia shares a commitment to peace and security with NATO partners, including support for Ukraine against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion. 

SUBJECTS: ASEAN centrality, South China Sea, AUKUS, Global rules based order, PLA Navy interactions HOST: Thank you very much. And from China, Senior Colonel. 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, the Hon Richard Marles MP, will attend the 22nd Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore from 30 May ‑ 1 June 2025, making this his fourth attendance as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence. Convened by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) and held annually in Singapore, the Shangri-La Dialogue is the region’s pre-eminent security forum.

**Check against delivery** Good evening. Thank you Commander Houlihan for that warm introduction, and for that welcome to us all. Thank you, most sincerely, to the wonderful crew of HMAS Choules for hosting us all here this evening. They’ve done an amazing job and we’re very grateful - so thank you.

TODAY marks 25 days until the fourth Invictus Games kicks off in Sydney, bringing together 500 serving and former serving Defence personnel from 18 nations who have been wounded, injured or become ill during their military service. Minister for Defence Personnel Darren Chester said he is delighted to have the Games in Australia.  “I encourage all Australians to get behind our competitors as they demonstrate their unconquerable spirit on the world stage,” Mr Chester said. To mark the 25 day milestone, uniform designs for the Games volunteers have been revealed.

As we mark 25 years of Australian service in Timor-Leste, we remember Australia’s long and proud history of international peacekeeping. When the Timorese people took the courageous step of voting for independence in 1999 and asked the international community for help to secure their nation, Australia answered. The referendum was overseen by the United Nations Assistance Mission to East Timor (UNAMET), containing Australian military and civilian police personnel.

In another example of ongoing progress in the national shipbuilding enterprise, Lurssen Australia, the prime contractor for the design and build of 12 new Offshore Patrol Vessels for Navy, has awarded a subcontract to L3 Communications Australia.