Television Interview, ABC News Breakfast

SUBJECTS: Steel and Aluminium Tariffs; US relationship; Australian War Memorial 

BRIDGET BRENNAN, HOST: Well, let's get more on the fallout from the introduction of American tariffs on steel and aluminium and what it means for Australia's relationship with the U.S. the Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles joins us now. Good morning, Richard Marles.

RICHARD MARLES, DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER: Good morning, Bridget. How are you?

BRENNAN: Yeah, I'm well. Good to talk to you on the programme again. Look, you've been a long time fan of our Alliance with the U.S. of course, stretching back decades. It must have been a crushing blow for you to learn that one of our closest allies has slapped tariffs on us.

MARLES: Look, it's no doubt it's a very disappointing decision that the Americans have made in relation to our steel and aluminium exports into the United States. It's, and you're right, it is a disappointing decision in the context of the relationship, the long term relationship that we've had with the United States. It's not a surprise. I mean, President Trump was flagging these policies during the US Presidential election. So, we've known for a long time that this is the direction he was intending to go. And these tariffs have been placed upon every country in the world. And so in that sense, no one has been spared from this. But we will continue to make the argument to the United States going forward and point out that last time round when President Trump was first the president, it was nine months before an exemption in relation to steel and aluminium was achieved. So, we'll keep making the case as we will in relation to all our other exports to the United States. But this is disappointing and it makes no sense for the U.S., I mean this, this is an act of economic self harm and having our two way trade tariff free has been very good for both economies and it's been very good for supporting jobs in the United States.

BRENNAN: Is it a sign of our Alliance weakening? Does it show that the United States no longer sees us in the same way it has?

MARLES: Look, I don't think that, I mean, I think President Trump made clear what his economic policies were going to be during the election. But we remain in alliance with the United States. And in a sense, the Alliance as it's articulated in the ANZUS Treaty really is a separate question and it remains very much the cornerstone of our national security. And as I have dealt with the United States in respect of our defence relationship, it is very strong, it is very deep and the equities that we have in place are in a good shape. And I got that firsthand when I met with Secretary Pete Hegseth a few weeks ago in Washington.

BRENNAN: Does the Opposition make a fair point that the Government hasn't made enough of a diplomatic effort to get Australia carved out from these tariffs? And why can't we get one of our key, most prized allies on the phone?

MARLES: Well, the Opposition is obviously seeking to use this moment to frankly engage in ranked politics. And in that, you know, they're not pursuing the national interests here. They're, pursuing their own self-interest. And it's really very different to the situation when we were in opposition and then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was seeking to achieve exemptions in relation to steel and aluminium tariffs with President Trump at the time. I mean, at that point we were doing everything we could as an opposition to support the Australian government of the day because it was in Australia's national interest to achieve this. What we've got right now in Peter Dutton is a person who is rubbing his hands with glee and doing everything he can to make political hay out of this moment. And I think it speaks very poorly in relation to Peter Dutton and the way in which he is going about his business and the way in which he is not supporting Australia's national interest. The truth is that our Government has been engaging with the Trump Administration literally from the moment that it has been inaugurated. And we've been engaging very significantly. The decision that has been made by the Trump Administration in relation to Australia is precisely the same decision that they've made in relation to every other country in the world. And there's no getting around that fact. But we will continue to advocate to the US about why our trade, our two way trade, which is in their surplus, is best being there without tariffs upon it.

BRENNAN: Admiral Chris Barrie, former head of the Australian Defence Force, has told the Nine papers this morning that he no longer thinks the United States stands as a reliable Ally for Australia under Donald Trump. Do you agree with him and do we need a plan B as he suggests, to form stronger alliances with other nations?

MARLES: No, I don't agree with him. We do have very strong relationships with a lot of countries. Obviously we have a deep relationship with the United Kingdom. We are deepening our relationships with countries like Korea and Japan. I mean, it's been a real feature of the last three years, the way in which our relationships have got increasingly deeper with both our near neighbours, but also a traditional partner like the United Kingdom. I mean, we now have a defence cooperation agreement with Indonesia, for example, which we didn't have before. We are working on an agreement of that kind with Papua New Guinea to update an agreement which dated right back to 1977. We are doing more with, as I said, with Japan, with Korea, with India, with countries like the Philippines, with Singapore. So, you can look at what we have been doing in terms of how we have engaged with the rest of the world over the last three years. And it's really at an unprecedented level. But, you know, America remains committed to AUKUS. We saw that in the meeting that I had with my counterpart Secretary Pete Hegseth, which was the first meeting that he had with any of his counterparts in the world a few weeks ago in Washington. And it's not surprising because the AUKUS arrangement is obviously in the interests of Australia, but it's in the interests of the United States. I mean, we are enabling more Virginia Class submarines to become available for the United States Navy. That's what we're doing. That's part of the agreement that we reached with them. An agreement which obviously enables us to acquire a future nuclear-powered, long range capable submarine capability. And because it works for both countries as well as the United Kingdom, it's why this is an arrangement which has now continued with change of governments in all three countries; Australia, UK and the United States. It's a multi decade arrangement and I expect it to continue for multi decades.

BRENNAN: All right, that's good news. Well, let's move to another issue, if you wouldn't mind, on the war memorial, the Australian War Memorial. Do you think it's unbecoming for the memorial to be taking money from the world's largest weapons manufacturers because some historians say it defiles the memory of our war dead?

MARLES: Look, it's a matter for the Australian War Memorial, obviously, but I don't have a problem with that. And defence industry is a really important industry in this country. And defence industry is quite evidently a sector which has been very much one that supported our defence forces. That's what they do. And as I engage with defence industry, it's an industry which absolutely understands the nature of service and does everything it can to respect and honour that. So, I don't have a problem with the war memorial going down this path, but it is ultimately a matter for the war memorial.

BRENNAN: All right, Richard Marles, we'll leave it there. Thanks very much for your time this morning.

MARLES: Thanks, Bridget.

Ends