MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS The Hon. Kevin Rudd MP

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1 MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS The Hon. Kevin Rudd MP REMARKS AT MERCOSUR COUNCIL OF FOREIGN AND TRADE MINISTERS FOZ DO IGUAÇU, BRAZIL 16 DECEMBER 2010 CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY I am delighted to be here at Mercosur. I am delighted to be here in Brazil at the invitation of my dear colleague Celso Amorim. And who would not be delighted to be here at the most beautiful place on God s earth called Iguaçu. Many do not realise it, but Australia could almost be an unofficial member of Mercosur. In 1893 two thousand men and women left Australia for Paraguay where they established a utopian socialist colony called New Australia. The colony was not a success, but their descendants can be found just over 200km from Foz do Iguaçu. In perhaps the greatest insult, what was once Neuva Australia (New Australia) is now known as Nueva Londres (New London). Colleagues, we in Australia see ourselves as a middle power with global interests. We are a strong and diverse $1.2 trillion economy the 12 th largest in the world. We are the 4 th largest economy in Asia, after China, India and Japan.

2 We are one of the founding members of the UN, the G20 and the East Asia Summit. We are active as members or partners in practically all of the major councils in the world. We are deeply committed to the principles of good international citizenship, the enhancement of an effective, global, rules based order for our common security, economic, environmental and humanitarian wellbeing. We are committed to what we call creative middle power diplomacy. We work in creative coalitions with other states to tackle the great challenges of our globalising age, not believing that great powers can solve all problems, nor believing that the existing systems of global governance are adequate to meet the global challenges that lie ahead. We are committed to the Millennium Development Goals and to that end we have the fastest growing ODA budget of any OECD country. We have doubled our ODA over the last five years to $4.3 billion annually. And we are on track to double it again to more than $8 billion by We are committed not only to the Asia Pacific Region, but also the Indian Ocean Region that connects Australia to South Asia, the Gulf States including the wider Middle East, and Africa. And we have global interests that connect us to Europe and the awakening giant that is South America. Today I announce that Australia will provide $100 million in development assistance to Latin America over the next four years. As Australia and Asia are growing rapidly, so too are the countries and economies of South America. But we know that there is more to come. Australia sees clearly the global rise of South America By 2020, one in 20 people will be from the Latin American region. With its strong growth trends and growing economic clout, including a combined GDP of over $4 trillion, this vast continent will continue to challenge 19 th century notions of the global order. We in Australia see this as an overwhelmingly good development. 2

3 This region s development has already lifted tens of millions of people out of poverty and created new economic opportunities for all. In many ways Australia and South America are natural partners. We believe in democracy, the protection and the global advancement of human rights. We believe that international organisations should better reflect the realities of today. Australia, for example, worked with Brazil, Argentina and Mexico in the G20 to reform the global financial system to provide a stronger voice for the smaller countries of the world. We believe that trade liberalisation creates more jobs and increased living standards for all. And to that end our two-way trade to the region has now risen to $5 billion plus annually. All Mercosur members are part of the Cairns Group. In fact, about half the members of the Cairns Group come from Latin America. We believe in the need for strong environmental protection. Here in Foz do Iguaçu, I am reminded of the vast environmental wealth of our continents, and how important it is to protect this heritage and to manage this asset for the generations to come. Australia looks forward to the Rio +20 Summit on Sustainable Development. We look forward to working for a strong outcome for the planet from Rio +20. To this end, I am honoured to have been asked by the United Nations Secretary-General to be a member of the UN High-Level Panel on Global Sustainability under the chairmanship of presidents Zuma and Halonen which is due to report to the international community in the lead up to Rio +20. Australia and South America also share a love of sport. I note that Australia and every member of Mercosur qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Let us aspire for the same for Australia has a proven record in hosting mega sporting events, such as the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and we stand ready to support our friends in Brazil host the best ever Olympic Games in 2016 just as we did with our friends in China in Australia and South America also believe in the importance of education. Our strong education connections are a key part of our relationship. Last year, some 32,000 students from the Latin American region enrolled to study in Australia a tripling of numbers since

4 Our universities have led the way, building a web of relationships. This growing set of cultural and more formal relationships covers vast ground. In September I signed an MOU for an enhanced partnership with our host Celso Amorim of Brazil, underlining a major expansion and deepening of our relations with this giant of South America and significant global player. We have deep and enduring ties with Argentina and, thanks in part to the resumption of direct Qantas flights between Sydney and Buenos Aires, passenger arrivals from Australia to Argentina have increased by 50% in the past year. In Paraguay, Melbourne based P&O Maritime Services has plans to invest $200m in that country's river-based transport system. Apart from the obvious benefits to Paraguay, this will also bring regional benefits by facilitating the iron ore trade between Brazil and Argentina. Earlier this year, Australia and Uruguay signed an MOU on Trade and Investment. This will build on our key partnership in the Cairns Group, underlined by Uruguay hosting a successful Cairns Group ministerial meeting in April. Australia s growing engagement with Mercosur is part of the Government s policy to deliver a substantial enhancement to our relations with this region. Australia wants to expand our engagement with the nations and the economies of this great continent. In the past, geography has kept our regions apart. Globalisation is now drawing our two regions closer together. Globalisation is overcoming what we in Australia call the tyranny of distance. New technologies are rapidly contracting the time and space in the foreign policy and the economic engagement of our wider global community. In Australia we are now laying out a National Broadband Network. This will provide fibre optic cable to the home, to the business, to the school, to the hospital, to the university at up to 100 megabits per second for 93% of Australians wherever they live. This will link Australian cities, businesses and institutions with rapid speed to their fellow digital citizens and digital based businesses across the world including here in South America. 4

5 This will transform the depth, breadth and density of engagement with each other in ways we have yet to imagine, but which our children already have, and are doing. In fact, our new challenge is to overcome the global digital divide between those who are fully connected, and those who are not. I am delighted that today Australia and the Mercosur countries have declared that we will forge closer trade and economic relations. And we do so today with the release of our Joint Declaration. Mercosur has on its flag the constellation of the Southern Cross. It is the same Southern Cross that appears on the national flag of Brazil. And on the flags of Australia and New Zealand. This common symbol of the southern skies should also be seen as a new guiding star for the future engagement of our two continents. This is the first Mercosur we have attended. If you are willing, it will be the first of many. Let us resolve that this meeting among us begins a new chapter in the relations among us. END 5