Middle East

Mr HAWKE ( Mitchell ) ( 12:31 ): It's a privilege to rise today and support the position the Australian government has taken in relation to the attacks the Houthis have been issuing on global commerce in our region. It is a problem for this government and our foreign policy in Australia that they have decided not to extend that moral support and ethical support to our partners and allies, the United States and many other countries, who are being impacted by the terrorist attacks backed by Iran in the Red Sea.

Why is this important? This is very important because Australia has a very important role to play in the world today in relation to foreign policy. We are regarded as one of the most successful economies and societies, and, certainly in our region, have an enormous influence over many other parts of the world. But, also, primarily in Australia's own direct self-interest is our attachment to global commerce and, indeed, shipping. It's very important to note that most of our goods and services imported in this country come by ship. It's part of Australia's passion to import goods and services from all around the world and to export many, too, including a lot of produce. We rely on global shipping; it's the golden seam of commerce that runs around the world, the free trade system that enables so much prosperity, the ability to feed so many people around the world. Hundreds of millions of people are better off because of the security and safety of global shipping routes.

When a state sponsored group attacks shipping commerce, the production of goods and services and the flow of goods and services through a critical route like the Red Sea, it is in Australia's direct interests to respond. I agree with the shadow minister, Simon Birmingham, who said that the complete lack of involvement directly on the ground is 'woefully inadequate'—but I think that's the polite version! Listening to the Greens, the real issue is that they have this notion that, if we somehow respond to a terror group attacking global shipping and undermining the entire free trade commerce system that exists in the modern world, we would be somehow violating peace in the world today, and that it would be more peaceful to allow terrorists to storm other people's ships with missiles and guns and to hold people hostage and steal their productive goods and services from their economies and take them for themselves—that it would be a violation of peace if we tried to interdict that. That's the position of the Australian Greens, somehow taken up by this government.

I think it's disturbing that investigations have revealed the Prime Minister, who received this request—his department received it through the usual channels from the United States, who have taken direct action in relation to this—chose not to respond directly. PM&C reported there was no response from the Prime Minister in relation to this; it was left to the defence minister to decide that we couldn't or wouldn't provide a naval vessel to stop what is in effect piracy—but when it's sponsored by another state actor it has to take on a different characteristic. When you think about the record of the ADF and the governments of Australia in the past, we have had ships involved in the Middle East for a long time, fighting piracy. Piracy is an ongoing problem, but this is a new threat, a distinct threat. It is something that will push up the prices of all goods that are travelling by ship. In fact, for container shipping the impact is already being felt: all around the world, the costs per container are rising. The risk of the loss of production and safety in global commerce has a huge cost. So why would we leave it to the United States, India, Canada or other countries around the world to do something about it, when we are so reliant on global shipping ourselves? On any benchmark, it is in Australia's direct interests to respond to what is happening, with force, in the Red Sea, with our allies and partners who are committed to the free, safe passage of international shipping—a principle that we thought would have absolute bipartisanship.

It isn't enough for the government to issue a press release to say, 'This is terrible, and we have conceptual support,' when, actually, Australia's direct interests are being violated as well. If we look at the interests of so many of our allies and partners in peace in the region, we would absolutely contradict the Greens. We call on the government to stare down the leaders of the Greens as well.

Not only has our live export shipping been affected, not only have our productivity and exports been affected, but we will see costs per container rising. We call on the government to do something—not just to talk about it, not to give spiritual support, but to commit to real action with our partners the United States.