Doorstop, Avalon

SUBJECTS: Defence Manufacturing, ISIS Foreign Fighters' Wives; Iran; Defence spending; Lodge evacuation

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER, RICHARD MARLES: It’s wonderful to be here at Hanwha Defence, Australia's facility at Avalon. I'm here this morning with Ella George, the State Member for Lara, with Colin Brooks, who is the State Minister for Industry, and Ben Hudson, who is the CEO of Hanwha Defence Australia, and also the CEO of Hanwha Defence Europe. Today is a very significant day because we have seen the completion of the first three Self Propelled Howitzers, the Huntsman, being produced right here at Avalon. And this is a significant milestone. This is the first time that we have had self-propelled, tracked artillery completely made in Australia. It is, in fact, the first time that we've seen a vehicle built in Geelong for a decade, which has its own significance. There are now 580 people working here at Hanwha’s facility, and in fact, a number of them were previously working at Ford when Ford was making cars here in Geelong. And so this facility very much adds to the history, but also the present and the future of vehicle manufacture here in Geelong. But this is fundamentally a massive achievement of Australian defence industry. There are 28 Redbacks, sorry, Huntsman, that will be built here at Avalon, with another 14 supply vehicles, and that's in addition to 129 infantry fighting vehicles, the Redbacks, which will also be built here. And across both programs, it’s an $8 billion investment by the federal government. This is an investment which is seeing capability brought into the Australian Defence Force faster than was originally anticipated. The Huntsman are on schedule. The Redbacks will be completed by the end of 2028, years ahead of schedule, and that's because we are putting a focus on getting this capability into our Defence Force as soon as possible. There are something like 20 Australian companies who are part of the supply chain, and one of those is Elphinstone, and we've got Dale Elphinstone who is here today. They have a number of facilities across Australia, but their manufacturing facility at Burnie is contributing to the building of both the Huntsman and the Redback. And again, it's a demonstration of the collaboration which is occurring across the country, and what this is doing in terms of building industrial capability around Australia. But in building that capability, we are also seeing here an incredible investment at this site, which is becoming a national asset. I think you would have just had a look, for example, at the EMI Centre, which is the largest facility of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. And so this site itself is becoming a national asset. Today is a really fantastic day in terms of what it says about the capability of Australia's industry, what it says about the capability of Australia's defence industry in particular, and what that in total is doing is building the capability of the Australian Army and the Australian Defence Force.

MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND ADVANCED MANUFACTURING, COLIN BROOKS: Thank you very much, Deputy Prime Minister. It's absolutely fantastic to be here today to see this world-class military machinery rolling off the production line right here in Geelong. We could not be prouder as Victorian Government to back this program — significant investment from the federal government here in Victoria to deliver Redbacks and Huntsman. Firstly, to make sure that people who serve in our Defence Force have the very best equipment and military hardware to keep them as safe as possible when they are serving our country. But also the jobs that this brings to this region and to our state, and indeed to the rest of the country as well. Our government’s provided $10 million through the supply chain uplift program. The last time I was here, we were announcing a tranche of recipients of that funding, and that's to help supply chain companies work into this program to produce these vehicles. We're so proud to be part of that, in partnership with Hanwha, to deliver those programs. That supply chain uplift program is delivering around 1000 jobs across Victoria. So we're really proud to support that and make sure Victorians are sharing the work that this produces, and, of course, the incredible employment benefit right here in the Geelong region that I know my colleague Ella George is so passionate about seeing delivered here in Avalon. To the people at Hanwha, we want to acknowledge the work that you're doing — the excellent manufacturing work. It was a privilege to attend Hanwha’s major production facilities and meet with officials in Korea last year, with Dean Mickey, the head of the plant here, and to see the scale of the operations there. And also to send a message to Hanwha that we are keen to see further investment, further partnership here in Victoria between Hanwha as well. And also to, the Consulate-General of the Republic of Korea who’s here today, to acknowledge that strong partnership between Victoria and Korea as well. We want to further develop that relationship and see more of this work occur here in Victoria. Thank you.

HANWHA DEFENCE AUSTRALIA AND EUROPE CEO, BEN HUDSON: A pretty special day hosting our special guests here, including the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister Brooks, and Ella as well. Great to see manufacturing of this scale back in Victoria. Vehicles again — a slightly different vehicle than perhaps a decade ago — but as the Deputy Prime Minister mentioned, a lot of our team have worked in that manufacturing sector on the automotive side in the past, ahead of production: Pat Healy and a lot of the team. It’s a great honour to have the Australian Army here as well. And we don't forget who we're actually doing this all for — those that serve, who are really there in times of crisis. And the great thing that we have in the AS9 and AS10 self-propelled artillery system – it is the most capable artillery system going into service anywhere in the world. So it's a real point of pride, I think, for the entire team here and myself, to be delivering that type of capability manufactured in Australia with our Australian partners to protect our soldiers, sailors, and airmen in that potential future fight, if it ever happens. And sort of coming off the back of that is our work on the Redback infantry fighting vehicle — again, not marketing speak — it is the most capable infantry fighting vehicle going into service anywhere in the world, and really orientated towards the future battlefield, not just current threats. And to see that built here just outside of Geelong, fantastic to see. And I think the last thing for me is, when you walk around the facility and talk to the younger generation — it’s a bit sad to say now I'm the older generation here — but some of our young engineers and the technicians on the production floor, to see them sort of building their future now in this advanced manufacturing sector, it really bodes well for the future of Australia. So thank you to the trust of the government, both the Victorian and the federal government, and also thank you for the trust of the Australian Army and CASG for working with us in partnership to deliver this important program. Thank you.

JOURNALIST: So just on ISIS brides, some of the-

MARLES: Very happy to answer those questions. Are there any specific questions on- 

JOURNALIST: We’re all good. 

MARLES: We're all good. Thank you, Ben.

JOURNALIST: Yeah. So on that group, they would, apparently, some of those women would accept being separated from their children if it meant the children could return to Australia. Would Australia accept or be willing to facilitate those children alone?

MARLES: Look, we are- I mean, firstly the Minister for Home Affairs has spoken extensively on this, and I fundamentally refer people to the comments that he's made. But Australia is not facilitating the return of any of this cohort. It's as simple as that. And our security agencies are monitoring this very closely. We've got a temporary exclusion order in place in respect on an individual, we've made it clear that anyone who turns up to Australia will face the full force of the law. But Australia is not facilitating the return of any of this cohort.

JOURNALIST: Can I just for clarification on the temporary exclusion order- Is there just one? Because there's reports today that there are two ISIS brides married to Australians that are being isolated in the camp, and we can sort of (inaudible)?

MARLES: Look, there is a temporary exclusion order in place, but again, I would leave further comment on that to the Minister for Home Affairs. 

JOURNALIST: Now to Iran, has Australia been asked to provide any direct or indirect support to the US military if the Trump administration does decide to press ahead with an attack on Iran.

MARLES: I'm not about to engage in speculation in respect of any future scenario. Obviously, the situation in the Middle East is uncertain, as we have made clear, we are taking precautionary measures in respect of the dependents of those diplomats who are serving, particularly in Israel and Lebanon. We have previously taken action in respect of the embassy that we previously had open in Tehran itself- they’re not there. We'll keep monitoring the situation, but I'm not about to engage in speculation about the future.

JOURNALIST: Do you expect to expand any of that support to non-diplomatic families and any other people in the region?

MARLES: We will monitor events, as we always do, in terms of how they unfold. Right now, we have taken a precautionary step in respect of the dependents of families- of our own diplomats who are serving in Israel and Lebanon. We will continue to monitor the situation.

JOURNALIST: And Donald Trump had said that initially, their sort of nuclear program in Iran had been (inaudible) he has now said in his State of the Union address that doesn’t seem to be the case and there is a risk of nuclear weapons. Has Australia been briefed on that? Specifically nuclear?

MARLES: We have a very close relationship with the United States as you know, and in terms of those conversations that we have in respect of events in the world, I'm not about to start talking about them publicly.

JOURNALIST: What would you say to any Australians in the region at the moment, though, just even on a personal sort of trip?

MARLES: Well, I mean, the very first thing to say is to monitor Australia's government's advice in respect to this- Smartraveller is a really important resource. We update that as quickly as we possibly can. It is our best advice as to what people should do in respect of their travel. In respect of Iran itself, it has for some time said that there should be no travel to Iran, and we've made clear to Australian citizens who are in Iran that if it is safe to do so, they should leave. So, that message remains the same. It is a fast moving environment. It is really, it is really important that people continue to monitor the advice that Australian Government provides.

JOURNALIST: And on ISIS brides- if they do make it back here, it's been reported they have Australian passports. What sort of I guess extra security arrangements are going to be in place to monitor that cohort?

MARLES: Well again, I mean, what we've made clear is that in this circumstance, our security agencies are monitoring this as closely as it is possible to monitor anything. And so, that that is very much happening and it is also the case that any Australian returning to this country who has been in breach of Australian law will face the full force of the law and that is certainly the case in respect of some of this cohort. So all of that would apply. The fundamental point here is there is no facilitation of any of this cohort to return to Australia. 

JOURNALIST: On the Prime Minister's security scare, have the police or intelligence agencies tried to ascertain exactly who was behind that bomb threat at The Lodge and yeah, have they tried to ascertain who was behind that?

MARLES: Well, I mean, obviously our police and our security agencies will investigate this fully, and we'll have a very close eye on all of this. And again, I wouldn’t speculate about the specifics of that publicly. What matters here is that the safety of our Prime Minister is clearly assured. We have the best security agencies, amongst the best security agencies in the world and they will be doing their job thoroughly in respect of this incident. 

JOURNALIST: The US wants its allies to up defence spending to 3.5 per cent can we expect any rise in the Budget. And are Australian officials, I guess, in contact with the US about our plans?

MARLES: Well, I mean, we're constantly in contact with the United States in respect of what both countries are doing in relation to their defence- 

JOURNALIST: (inaudible)

MARLES: Well, I mean, I've spoken extensively on this, I mean- and I talk extensively to my counterpart, Secretary Hegseth at a deeper level, between the Department of War in the United States and our Department of Defence about what the American plans are for their own defence and what our plans are. I mean, that's what we would do- that's what we do as allies. And in that context, we've made it clear that what is happening right now in Australia is the biggest peacetime increase in our defence spending in our nation's history, and that is something which is absolutely recognised by the United States. You can see that in the comments that the President himself made when he met with our Prime Minister. So there is absolute clarity from the United States point of view about what we are doing, and the fact that we are dramatically increasing our defence expenditure. Our expenditure today is 2.8/2.9 per cent of GDP in terms of the NATO measurement that places us very strongly relative to NATO countries which have made that commitment and obviously we are doing more in terms of increasing our defence expenditure. You will see, you've seen the announcements that we've made most recently with the announcement in respect of Henderson. No doubt you'll see more in the future. But actually what we do in this moment is stand by the record of what we've done since 2022 and that is engage in the biggest peacetime increase in our defence spending in our country's history. Thank you.

ENDS