Press Conference, Osborne Shipyards

SUBJECTS: AALD, AUKUS, Defence Spending, SA Algal Bloom, COP 31

PETER KHALIL [ASSISTANT MINISTER]: Welcome everyone, it's great to be here in the great state of South Australia, and the great City of Adelaide, and to welcome two international guests, our good friends from the US Congress, Representative Joe Courtney from Connecticut, and Representative Trent Kelly from Mississippi, and of course to be graciously by hosted the Premier of South Australia, Peter Malinauskas. 

South Australia is a great state; I love visiting South Australia. We're here, and especially important, in the next couple of days, Adelaide is hosting The Australian‑American Leadership Dialogue, one of the most important elements of our great relationship; it's a dialogue and initiative that has gone on for over thirty years in which political leaders and thought leaders from both of our great countries have come together to discuss the issues that matter to our relationship and how we work together, and it's great to have it in Adelaide this year. 

I will say, however, once it's finished, I'm out of here, and I'll be watching Collingwood play Adelaide from Melbourne, and I know ‑ so Joe and Trent don't know this, but my team, Collingwood Football Club, is a bit like the New England Patriots, and Adelaide is a bit like a nondescript Midwest side, made its way to the top of table without anyone noticing, but I think the Premier's going to be on my side as a Port Adelaide man. 

So anyway, it's great to be here. This relationship is so important, and you know, we've got Joe and Trent here from the other side of the world, from Connecticut and Mississippi, are a long way away from Adelaide, but it's indicative of the importance of our bilateral relationship, our alliance, our partnership.   

You know, over the past five, 10 years, we've seen that grow, our military engagement, we've seen that at Talisman Sabre, our intelligence agencies working together in the Indo‑Pacific, our security agencies and the work that they do together, and our economic and trade relationship, and the US is the biggest investor in Australia. 

All of those elements have actually got stronger over the past five or so years, because we do have a common interest in ensuring the security, the stability and the prosperity across the Indo‑Pacific and globally. And it's great to have Joe and Trent here to visit us. And I might give them an opportunity to say a few words about the relationship as well. 

Obviously, Joe and Trent, I want to thank them for all of their great work, their bipartisan support around the AUKUS initiative, they've been champions of AUKUS, they're on the Australia Caucus in Congress, they've done a terrific job, so we thank them for their bipartisan support, and it's great to have them here, and I'll hand over to Joe and Trent, and then we'll hear from the Premier. Thank you very much. 

JOE COURTNEY [US CONGRESSMAN]: Well, good morning everyone. Thank you, Peter, for you know, bringing us all together, and the Premier. Both of these guys have been frequent flyers to Washington, and it's nice to be able to return the favour, actually to come and, you know, see in person a lot of the discussions that we've had in Washington about the really, you know, eye‑watering investment that's going on in the shipbuilding sector here in Australia. 

The premier and I were just sort of comparing notes about, you know, new tools sort of challenges that both countries have in terms of workforce investment and growth, and I'm very foolish and optimistic that, you know, with the right sort of mixture of good curriculum and policy, we can solve that problem.  

And we're seeing it in real time in Southern New England, and my great colleague, Chairman Kelly from the Sea Power Sub‑Committee, who has a huge shipyard in Mississippi at Pascagoula, they're going through exactly the same sort of issue, and they're also, you know, finding ways to solve that problem. 

And I'll just sort of say really quickly that Trent, as the Chair of the Sea Power Sub‑Committee was really right there at the hub in terms of the AUKUS authorities that were enacted in 2023, very bipartisan, very strong. 

There's lots of good things happening, it's not all on whiteboards, as some of the critics say, and you know, obviously we're committed to making sure that, you know, this really important collaboration between those three countries really continues with very strong support, and I would just say, and I think Trent would probably echo this, that in Congress, that support is still very strong and very deep and very bipartisan in terms of, you know, what we started in 2023 with the AUKUS authorities. 

Lastly, I would just say that, you know, the sort of collaboration, some of which has been happening that sometimes doesn't get as much attention, is right here in Adelaide. So my part of the New England University of Connecticut has the National Institute of Undersea Vehicle Technology, which is doing cutting edge work for the US Navy in terms of submarine and unmanned vessels, and you know, doing all kinds of stuff that we can't really talk about that much publicly, but they're sharing their curriculum with the University of Adelaide who have also come and visited, and vice versa.  

You know, we have undergraduate and graduate engineering students come to Adelaide, and the two faculties have a very healthy back and forth and dialogue. 

And that’s exactly what I think is going to help, again, us deal with the question of really a decades‑long challenge in terms of, again, creating the trust and the speed with which AUKUS is dedicated to in terms of achieving the goal of a free and open Pacific, as Peter said, and also solving problems for both sides in terms of how we accomplish that, and the work they're doing at Adelaide University, yesterday, again, the group that visited there was just absolutely stunned in terms of the artificial intelligence, research and cutting‑edge work that we can really benefit from in the US. 

So again, it's a pleasure to be here, and as I guess we say in the House of Representatives, I'll give the floor to a great friend and member from the State of Mississippi, Trent Kelly. 

TRENT KELLY [US CONGRESSMAN]: I'm known for my brevity, but let me say, that is the third time I've been to Australia within a year, and I've been over all different ports. I think that shows my commitment to the partnership and the friendship and the alliance that the United States and Australia, as well as our friends in Great Britain enjoy. I think that's important. 

If you want to know how important it is to me, I think you take that I came here three times within a year, that's how much I value the AUKUS relationship, and our relationship with Australia. 

I will continue to visit. I'm on the Caucus with Joe Courtney, who is a co‑Chair, we continue to have that commitment, I'm on both the intelligence and the Services Committee in the United States, and our relationship with our Australian partners is one that cannot be ‑ it can't be replicated. 

And so, it's important that we continue to grow as friends. I've seen that relationship over the last two or three years as AUKUS has matured grow stronger and better in a relationship that I didn't think could get any better or stronger, but we continue to get better and closer, and our commitment is great. 

We're going to continue AUKUS; it's building synergy, and it's going to continue to build synergy, I think we need to focus some more on Pillar II and make sure we take the opportunities that exist to build things and share things and make each of us greater. 

The thing I love about AUKUS the most is all three of our partners get stronger and better by doing that. Together we are stronger than we are as individuals. I look forward to continuing to come to Australia, and thank you for having me here, and they make fun of my accent in America, and you guys, I'm closer to your accent than I am to the ones that most people in America have. So, thank you for having us – the Premier, and yes, thank you. 

PETER MALINAUSKUS [SA PREMIER]: Thanks so much Congressmen and Peter, it's great to have you all here in our magnificent city and State, which is very much at the centre of all of the activity that's happening around our country as we gear up towards AUKUS Pillar I and AUKUS Pillar II as well. 

Adelaide feels exceptionally grateful for the opportunity to be able to host The Australian‑American Leadership Dialogue over the course of the next few days. We are seeing senior Congressmen, Senators, officials from both the Defence sector, but also the public service in the US here to engage with counterparts within the Australian bureaucracy and military and political sphere to make sure that we continue to build the momentum that is already being enjoyed in South Australia around the relationship. 

Of course central to that is AUKUS, and as a State Government, we've obviously made very clear that we welcome the AUKUS review that is being conducted by the Trump Administration, because that review will allow and will bring to light just how much work is already underway here in Osborne, but also in South Australia more broadly, particularly as we challenge ‑ take on that challenge that Congressman Courtney referred to in the workforce. 

I was explaining to Joe that just up the road from here, you know, 12, 15 kilometres away, is the Findon Technical College where, as we speak, the next generation of workers who will work on the AUKUS Pillar I program are starting to get the skills that will be required for them to have a magnificent career in front of them. 

Here at Osborne, we see all of the activity just across the road, in terms of the building of the Skills and Training Academy, which will train up to 2,000 people a year to work on the AUKUS program. That construction is well and truly underway. 

So there's an awful lot of momentum behind the program, there's a lot that has been achieved, but we're alive to the fact that we're only at the beginning, and to the extent that we can share ideas and discuss the opportunities before us throughout the course of the dialogue, that is something that South Australia is very excited to be host for over the next couple of days. 

There will be a range of engagements, an extraordinary number of opportunities, it won't all be defence‑related.  There's a significant focus on critical minerals, which again South Australia can be a major player in, we're going to have a forum at BHP on that this evening, for instance, but it's a big few days for a massive program, and I just can't thank the Assistant Minister and the Federal Government, along with our friends in the US Congress enough for choosing to be here; it is a long way from home.  

We were talking about their version of football, where they wear helmets and shoulder pads, we've got a different one here that we think's a bit harder again, but I hope you very much enjoy the opportunity, not just to enjoy Australian hospitality, as Peter and I have been so grateful to be recipients of in the US, but also enjoy the opportunity to see just how much work is happening on the ground here in Australia. 

KHALIL: Any questions? 

JOURNALIST: Do you have any update on your discussions with the Congress about the progress of the AUKUS review, and where that's at with Mr Trump? 

KHALIL: The review that's being conducted by the administration is not anything unusual. In fact, most incoming administrations conduct reviews, that's part of the work of government. 

In fact the UK conducted a review around AUKUS, we conducted a review through the National Defence Strategy, that's a normal part of government work, and we are working with ‑ our Defence officials obviously are in communication with the Pentagon and providing whatever information is needed, and as the Premier said, we welcome that review, because it's important to highlight the remarkable benefits that flow from the AUKUS partnership. 

We're talking about the sharing of technologies, the advancement of capability that's going to be strategically beneficial for all three nations, and that's something that is so important for all of us with respect to, frankly, the challenges we face in what is probably the most volatile strategic circumstances since World War II. 

So, the work that we do together, the team work, even, you know, having some of the ASC staff going to Pearl Harbor to learn how to do maintenance on the Virginia, all of this works in a team‑type atmosphere that is beneficial for all three nations. 

JOURNALIST: Do you know when that review will be completed? 

KHALIL: I don't have the timelines, that's up to US Administration. 

JOURNALIST: Are you confident or do you believe that the Adelaide‑built AUKUS nuclear‑powered submarines is threatened in any way by the review? 

KHALIL: No, because I think, as the Premier said, we welcome the review to look into the benefits that accrue for all of our three nations. Obviously South Australia is a critically important part of the workforce equation, the build, obviously this facility here is quite remarkable, we had an amazing tour of the facilities here where the work that the staff are doing here on the Collins‑class subs. 

So, I think, you know, I don't want to talk too highly about South Australia when Collingwood's playing Adelaide on Saturday, but South Australia's very well placed insofar as its workforce, its expertise and its facilities. 

JOURNALIST: So, you're confident that review won't scuttle this program? 

KHALIL: Well, as I said, the review is welcome, because it brings forward the issues that are actually important for us to discuss about how we can get the best out of this partnership. 

Look, the AUKUS partnership is something that is historic, it's critical, it's important. The advance capability that we get out of the Virginia‑class and the future AUKUS submarine is extremely important for Australia's defence capability. 

When we're talking about making sure that we have the ADF and the defence capability to deter and deny adversaries from, you know, impacting negatively our national interest, forcing others to come back to the negotiating table rather than using force, investment in defence is about investment in peace. 

It is really important to understand, I know it's a bit counterintuitive, but when you invest in our Defence Forces, when you invest in our defence capability, you're investing in a program that is all about making sure that we don't have to go to conflict, because it deters others; when you have that strength of capability it deters others in their calculus from using force as a means to reach strategic objectives. 

So, it is very important that we give our men and women in uniform every asset, every capability that they need to do their jobs to protect Australia's national interest and our national security. 

JOURNALIST: Minister, are you preparing for the chance that the White House will ask for further investment in defence from Canberra to keep the AUKUS deal alive? 

KHALIL: Well, we've already, as part of the AUKUS arrangement, I think there's been two tranches of a billion dollars, and there will be another one that goes towards the build and the capability work that we're doing as part of that arrangement, and so I think, you know, we're doing our part, it's part of the AUKUS initiative, and it's an important aspect of the program. 

Look, and the other thing I'd say about defence spending is that Australia has ‑ the Labor Government, since we came to power, we've increased defence spending in the next couple of years by almost $11 billion, and over the decade by $58 billion. That is the largest increase in defence spending since probably World War II, I'd say. Some historians might want to correct me on that, but it has been the largest increase in peacetime spending since World War II. 

And as the Prime Minister has said very, very clearly, we will go through the process of determining through our IIP and our National Defence Strategy process, and our budget process, what capabilities does the ADF need; what assets do we need, and we will make decisions through that proper process around defence spending on those capabilities, and I think that is the correct path, because it is all about making sure we have the right capabilities to match the strategic circumstances and the challenges that we face. 

JOURNALIST: Are you also confident though that the US shipbuilding program will reach the milestones it needs so it can sell submarines to Australia? 

KHALIL: Well, that's probably a question for the US about their confidence around their country's shipbuilding program, but from everything I've seen we do have confidence in that. 

Obviously, as I've said, we're working together as a team, I think there's a number of staff and Australians who are working over there in the US to build up their skills around maintenance on the submarine program with the Virginia‑class; we've got ASC staff over there at Pearl Harbor. 

So, this is a team effort, we've got people in the UK as well, and we're working together to sort of multiply, almost a force multiplier as far as workforce and skills uplift. So yep, very confident in that. 

JOURNALIST: Premier, just in terms of ‑ you mentioned the workforce challenge there…

MALINAUSKUS: Yeah. 

JOURNALIST: Are you sort of confident that Osborne and this broader peninsula, is that where it needs to be in terms of where the workforce will need to be in 10 years' time? 

MALINAUSKUS: I'm cautious about that, and I've made that ‑ I've been speaking about that since before I was elected Premier. I think the task is very substantial and I think often underestimated by people around the country. But I'm increasingly confident, and I can say that just because of some of the activity we're seeing rolling out, particularly the construction of the Skills and Training Academy that's now on a ‑ you know, that's on the drumbeat of progress, and has to be in order to get the students in the timeframe that is required, but at least we've begun there, and I'm excited to see that, I was very, you know, I was very grateful to see that occur, because I would have liked to have seen that started earlier, if I'm frank about it, but it's now started, and it's going to start delivering students all things being equal at the timeline that is required. 

In regards to what we're doing as a State Government, again increasingly confident, because at that time [indistinct] college program is now rolling out at its pace, we're now seeing enrolments at strong levels into those courses, which is a sign of confidence; similarly on a TAFE level. The university amalgamation is very much on track, and the universities will play a critical role in this, not just the new university, but also Flinders as well, who is really picking up its pace in this area. 

So we are in a far stronger position today than what was the case a few years ago, but the work will have to be maintained, because we're at the beginning of this program, a long way from the end of it, which is an exciting thing, but we just have to keep that cadence up, that momentum up, to make sure we continue to renew the effort. 

JOURNALIST: Can you put some numbers around it; like is it thousands of workers that ‑‑ 

MALINAUSKUS: Oh, thousands, many thousands, I mean ‑ like I mean the AUKUS program alone requires thousands, so, you know, we're talking circa 5,000 people working on the AUKUS submarines once they're at peak of construction, which is in the first half of the next decade. 

Now, you know, to some people that sounds like some time away, but it's not, not at all, and more than that, it's not just the AUKUS program, there's 5,000 direct, then there's all the employees indirect, and then of course we've got the scale‑up that is already in train in Hunter. 

Now let's use Hunter as a bit of an example. Three years ago, the task of the crewmen in Hunter looked formidable, some said unachievable, but it's largely been achieved thus far, and they're still increasing the number of people in the Hunter program, and now we're starting to see schedules being met in regards to the Hunter program. 

It's got the certainty. Certainty is ‑ I can't stress enough how important certainty is as a commodity here, because without certainty young people aren't going to choose to put their hand up to make this their career for a lifetime. 

On Hunter, now that the certainty is there, on the surface shipbuilding program, there is the certainty and confidence, and people are dedicating their lives to it. That opportunity is before us in terms of the AUKUS submarine program, and the best thing that we can do to deliver that certainty is momentum. 

And this is the irony of the Trump Administration's review, is I can understand why some people look at that with a degree of caution, I look at that as an opportunity, because if indeed it affirms the AUKUS program, as we hope and anticipate, then it will be a line in the sand, because then every single country that has signed up to AUKUS would have endured a change of administration, a change of political colours, and it would have demonstrated maintained bipartisan support beyond the electoral cycle. 

I mean today we've got two senior Congressmen here, very senior Congressmen from different parts of the country and different political parties with very different views, except on AUKUS, and that, I think, lends itself to people being increasingly confident about the future. 

JOURNALIST: Premier, why won't you be --

MALINAUSKUS: I'll go Paul and then come back 

JOURNALIST: Do you believe the Adelaide nuclear‑powered submarine build under AUKUS is in any way threatened by the Trump Administration's review? 

MALINAUSKUS: I think that no matter which way you cut it, Australia will be building nuclear submarines here in Adelaide, and the reason why I say that is because there's no choice. And you know, we discussed it before that any thoughtful analyst who looks at the field of options before the Federal Government, regardless of their political persuasion, knows that if Australia wants a submarine capability that the best thing it can do is stick to a plan. 

At the moment it's got a plan to build nuclear submarines here in Adelaide, and it's going to stick to them. There's no one else selling, there's no country that has an off‑the‑shelf program that says we can buy nuclear submarines from them, so we've got to build them for our ‑ no one believes we shouldn't have a submarine program, which means we've got to build them for ourselves, and it's got to happen here in Adelaide. So, I am confident about it. 

JOURNALIST: I just asked why you won't be at West Beach today with your Ministers Watt and Close, and if you're worried about the optics of that? 

MALINAUSKUS: No, I'm hosting some of the most senior people across the US Government today as part of the Australian‑American Leadership Dialogue, which has been planned for years. 

The South Australian Government put its hand up to host this dialogue at this time for very good reason back in 2022. So, I'm here hosting some of the most senior people across the US to make sure that we continue the momentum around AUKUS, which is important for the future of our State, not just now, but for many decades to come. 

Last night I was in Victor Harbor at the forum, I think maybe some members of the media were present, hosting forums up and down the coastline, I'm at the Algae taskforce tomorrow, so part of my responsibility is to walk and chew gum at the same time, and that's what I'll be doing over the next few days. 

JOURNALIST: There seems to be an emerging list of high‑profile wildcards putting their hands up for next year's election; we've got Jim Lee, David Speirs, I mean what do you make of that, and does it make it harder to achieve what you wanted at the election? 

MALINAUSKUS: Yeah, it's interesting. Considering that they're all ex‑Liberals, probably not. I've been very deliberate about, you know, not spending too much of my time worrying about the sort of shambles that we see in the State Liberal Party. 

My job is to focus on the opportunities and the challenges, and we've had questions about that here; challenges like the algal bloom and drought, opportunities like using AUKUS as a platform to set us up for the future, and that's my focus. I'm not worrying about all the ex‑Liberals running against the Liberal Party at the next election. 

JOURNALIST: Just a quick one on COP 31. 

MALINAUSKUS: Yes. 

JOURNALIST: Are you worried about the sort of longer timeframe here it's taken to land on a host city, and is that going to impact Adelaide's preparation at all? 

MALINAUSKUS: Yeah, that's a good question. I don't think people really appreciate just how big this is. This is basically the biggest global conference that happens anywhere in the world, pretty much the next biggest event in a single city outside of the Olympics, and we hope to be hosting it here in Adelaide in November next year. 

So, preparations, of course, have to happen forthwith. We've got no choice but to get on with the task in the hope that Australia does win the rights, which in turn means that it will be held here in Adelaide. 

So, we start those preparations, not presumptively, but pragmatically, given that if we want to host the event as well as we know we can, that we're not caught out by a late decision from the appropriate authorities about which country's going to host the event. 

We're very grateful for the Commonwealth support in that regard. Look, the best thing that can happen here for whoever the host country is, either Australia or Turkey, it's for a decision to be reached quickly, because then it allows for the respective host city and country to get on with the task, and I just hope there's a resolution soon. 

PETER KHALIL: Thanks everyone.

ENDS