Transcript
27 October 2009
Interview with ABC correspondent Mark Willacy in Tokyo
Subjects: Hatoyama Government, Japan FTA, Bridgestone, Southern Bluefin Tuna.
INTERVIEWER: Well, Simon Crean, is it time – we’ve got a new government here in Tokyo after fifty years, we’ve got a first term government in Canberra – is it time for a revitalisation in the Australia-Japan relationship, particularly in terms of trade?
MINISTER: Regardless of the change of government, I believe it is time to revitalise the trade relationship and the economic relationship. Why? It’s been going for close on fifty years. It has strengthened as we’ve gone forward, but it’s also been, until recently, narrow in its focus. We think that we can significantly widen the interest, both through investments and services markets. We still have to deal with the traditional areas, but the great opportunity going forward is really there to take up, and that’s what I hope we can establish- with a fresh government in office, I hope we can establish a new opportunity to revitalise that relationship.
INTERVIEWER: If we talk about the exports though, then you’re talking about a very narrow base in a lot of ways, aren’t you, with commodities, etc.? But the services side, we’ve seen a decline in that by about ten percent, I believe, last year. Is that very much a focus that you’re going take?
MINISTER: It is. The services side has to be. But I think whilst you talk about that narrowing, it’s interesting as to what widened last year, and it wasn’t just resources. It was also the value-added food industry. It was the property market. And I think that the important one is this - and that’s property development, because Japan has technological advances, but we have particular skills in smart building. Now this is an opportunity not just between the two markets, it’s the opportunity to work together in third markets. That’s the other important dimension of this revitalised relationship. It isn’t just extending it to services. It isn’t just understanding the importance of encouraging investment flows in a more effective way between both countries, but it’s looking at how, together, we can tackle third market opportunities. And when you look at this region, Asia’s the fastest growing region in the world, and will be for decades to come. This is the opportunity to use the strength of the relationship and broaden in to the wider area.
INTERVIEWER: Is the ultimate revitalisation of the relationship in trade the Free Trade Agreement?
MINISTER: It’s a component of it. The Free Trade Agreement will be a real test as to whether we can re-state this agreement. But, as you know, my bigger focus in terms of trade negotiations is concluding the Doha round. We have to use Japan actively now that it’s got a new government in place to try and push that along. But it’s also the regional architecture, Mark. We have worked very closely together in terms of support for ASEAN+6, if you like, the greater integration of the region now that both of our countries have signed free trade agreements with ASEAN. So, rather than just see it in the narrowness of the bilateral relationship, as important as that is to revitalise in its own right, it’s the strength that we use as a platform to engage with the wider region that is also of great opportunity for us.
INTERVIEWER: Is that an acknowledgment though, that getting that free trade agreement in going to be extremely difficult, even with a new government, because that new government has made it very clear that agriculture in this country will be protected?
MINISTER: Agriculture is always the difficulty with these free trade agreements in Asia. We’ve experienced that before. But, look, if we can reach a free trade agreement with ASEAN – with ten different countries – and deal with their sensitivities on agriculture, I’m certain we can do it. If there’s a will to conclude a comprehensive FTA, I’m certain we can do it with Japan. But what it needs is that political will. We’ve got to judge that whilst we’re here. The very fact that they’re meeting with us - this is the first meeting that Australia has engaged them in on their soil, and it’s taking place at a time in which the Diet is in session for the first time with the new parliament elected – so they obviously see great opportunity for this engagement. The challenge is ahead of us, but I think that we’re certainly up to it, I know that. And I think that they’re up to it. So let’s think positively about it, but expand the horizons beyond the difficulties. We know what the difficulties are, but what we’ve got to establish are the opportunities, and the opportunities are huge, not just between our two economies but within the region as a whole.
INTERVIEWER: So do you get a sense with this new government– as I say it’s the first new government, as you could put it, for over fifty years; it’s a centre-left government. Do you see that with them you might make more headway on an FTA than you would with old Liberal Democratic Party?
MINISTER: I believe that they are committed to the importance of trade to economic sustainability. Trade is the economic stimulus you can have without taking a hit on the budget. Trade is an exit strategy for the global recovery that doesn’t hurt the budget. And they get that. I think it’s also fascinating that the two most significant changes by governments that have injected new enthusiasm into a global debate has been Australia and Japan in relation to climate change. So there is enormous opportunity to not only advance that global agenda, but to integrate it back to what both of our countries do well, and that is technological and service-based solutions to the climate change challenge. The opportunity of green jobs, by working together to address to the region’s challenges in addition to our own challenges of climate change. But this is a significant new dynamic: two new countries with a huge desire to move this agenda along. That’s another field that translates back into the trade area, and the opportunity area.
INTERVIEWER: Let’s talk about the two visions of these two countries. Obviously there might be rival visions to the, if could put like this, the new “bigger than APEC” grouping, so to speak. Japan has gone a little bit further than Kevin Rudd’s vision. They’re suggesting an East Asian Community with an East Asian common currency. How do you like the sound of that?
MINISTER: Well, I don’t think that is, with respect, what they are suggesting, I think that’s been an interpretation as to what they’re suggesting. In the discussions I’ve had already with Foreign Minister Okada, I think that our proposals and the Japanese proposals have a lot in common. Now clearly this is a process that’s evolved. It was kicked off by Kevin Rudd’s initiative for the Asia Pacific community, which generated a lot of interest. There were a lot of questions, a lot of reservations with it as it began, but I think as we saw in Thailand over the weekend at the East Asia Summit, there is a new preparedness to engage the importance of what sort of architecture do we want going forward. The fact that the new Government of Japan is also thinking about this, how to address the same challenge, is exciting. And we should be working much more closely with them to find the common ground. That’s the message I’ve conveyed up here, I’ll continue to convey it, because I think there is a lot of common ground. I don’t accept the argument that there are major fundamental differences between the two proposals that are being put.
INTERVIEWER: What about the idea of a common East Asian or Asian currency. Is that pie in the sky stuff at this stage?
MINISTER: I think that’s too far down the track and it’s getting into too much level of detail at this stage. I think by far what is the greater desire is to ensure that we’ve got a financial architecture in the region that doesn’t expose the region in the way the recent Global Financial Crisis did. There’s a lot of interest in looking to Australia for solutions in that regard because of the strength of our banking system, the strength of our funds management system, the strength of our regulatory framework. And so here again is an important opportunity to not just talk about the opening of markets for financial services across all those spectrums, but to also engage the platform that better delivers for the region. And this is an item not just in terms of the G20 agenda, but also for a regional focus that we hope to advance.
INTERVIEWER: And would you put to the Japanese basically the Rudd plan going further than issues of economies and trade and going into that issue of disaster management, border security, counter-terrorism?
MINISTER: Well I think that everyone is looking for the architecture in the future that hopefully provides the basis for dealing with the whole range of those things. But as we build towards it we ought to understand the strength of the framework that exists in so many aspects of the relationship. One of those clearly is trade. APEC has a very ambitious agenda for stronger and more diversified economic integration within the region. Let’s try and take the strengths of where we’ve got to and where we can proceed, and see how the gaps can be properly accommodated. That to me is the opportunity going forward. That seems to be the same page that both countries are talking about. Obviously there’s a lot more discussion that has to take place because many of these issues are complex, but there’s a solid basis, there’s a solid political desire to move in that direction and there is much common ground.
INTERVIEWER: If I could just ask you about one specific issue and that’s the recent announcement by Bridgestone, the shutting of that particular plant. Bridgestone are obviously a Japanese company. Could you say that was a vote of no confidence in Australia’s automotive manufacturing sector?
MINISTER: No, I think you look at the automotive sector and the vote of confidence was GM not cutting GMH loose. It cut lots of others loose but it retained Australia. And why is Australia important? Because Australia is one of only fifteen economies in the world that has the capability to take a car from design to the showroom floor. This is a capability in terms of a global regeneration, a whole new re-think of the automotive market that repositions us to be part of important global supply chains. Now, are we good at making tyres, yes we are but can we do it as competitively as others, no? But what we are good at is design. What we are good at is innovation. What we are good at is the capabilities that surround that because they hive off not just into the design of the vehicle but smart manufacturing, componentry, clever solutions, and most importantly clean fuel, lower carbon footprint cars, hybrids. The Australian Government has invested heavily in supporting the industry in this field because this is where the auto industry needs to go, it’s where Australia can position and that’s the real opportunity going forward.
INTERVIEWER: On another issue of mutual interest to both countries, tuna and the recent announcement involving the Southern Bluefin Tuna. Obviously some South Australian fishermen seem to think that will have a major impact on their industry domestically, but will it have any impact to your knowledge as yet on the trade side of things, especially that export market to Japan.
MINISTER: No it won’t have impact, I’m talking with the Fisheries Minister later today so I can assess that better, but I know the Port Lincoln tuna fishermen very well, I’ve been backward and forward to Port Lincoln and seen its development over 30 years and it has got a great future. But it can only fish if the stocks are there. It’s understood the importance of overfishing and Japan was a big culprit. The problem for them was that the previous government did hardly anything to stop the overfishing. Our Government has understood the importance of moving forward. That’s why it was an active participant in the Seoul meetings. And those meetings said well here’s the science, if you don’t improve your practices the industry’s gone and it’s had to introduce some pretty dramatic cuts. Now that impacts on everyone but that’s the price you pay for past inaction.
What we have to do is to make sure that overfishing problem doesn’t continue off the back of this quota, and the other thing that we’ve got to do is to actively work with those tuna farmers down there because they’ve developed a process for closing the life cycle of the Bluefin Tuna, they’ve already perfected it with Kingfish. Now this is an issue down the track but Japan is heavily into the technology in this field. If we can get some cooperation around that it might actually be a good news story between Japan and Australia as to how to address this problem going forward.
INTERVIEWER: So are you confident that with the new Government in power here in Tokyo that there won’t be that overfishing problem that there will be a policing of the Japanese tuna fleet in terms of the Southern Bluefin Tuna and the quotas?
MINISTER: What I’m confident about is the preparedness by this new Government to engage intensively and quickly with the Australian Government. A realisation by this government in Japan that the relationship with Australia is strong and needs to be made stronger. A realisation by the new government there’s a lot we have in common but a lot more we can do together. Our task is to make sure that these sensitive issues are brought to their attention at the appropriate level, that we find the common ground, and work together for the common solutions. The two things that we’ve got going in our favour is not just the strength of the relationship, but the depths of the creativity in both economies, the innovation. That’s what’s good about both these economies. I’m certain that together we can find the solutions.
ENDS
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