Australian PM Denies US Role in Pacific Police After Talks Taped
(Bloomberg) -- Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has brushed aside suggestions of US involvement in a new Pacific security accord after he was recorded privately discussing the deal with a senior Biden administration official.
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In the clip recorded on the sidelines of a Pacific forum in Tonga, Albanese is shown speaking candidly with Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell about the Pacific Policing Initiative unveiled on Wednesday. Under the terms, Australia will spend A$400 million ($271 million) to help boost domestic security in the island states.
Albanese tells Campbell it has been a “cracker” of a day at the forum, with the US diplomat replying that the new agreement is “fantastic.”
After the Australian prime minister says how important the new policing pact will be, Campbell responds that he had earlier spoken with Australia’s Ambassador to Washington Kevin Rudd about the US undertaking an unspecified initiative. “He asked us not to, so we did not. We’ve given you the whole lane, so take the lane,” Campbell said.
Albanese says with a laugh, “you can go us halvies on the cost if you like.”
Under the policing plan, Australia will work with Pacific nations to build training colleges to improve domestic security, coordinated in part through a hub in the northern city of Brisbane.
The announcement represents a blow to China’s diplomatic efforts in the region, where Beijing has frequently offered assistance with policing and security as part of its outreach to the Pacific. Albanese has repeatedly insisted in recent days that the deal is “Pacific led,” though his candid comments with Campbell may inflame perceptions that Australia is operating as a US proxy.
Asked about the clip on Thursday, Albanese accused the journalist who recorded it of acting unethically and denied Campbell had said the US withdrew its initiative at Australia’s request.
“It is Pacific led, this has been led by police ministers who have been meeting about this for a year,” he said, adding no one in the Pacific Island Forum has raised concerns with him over attempts to keep China out of the region.
Contacted for a response, the US embassy in Canberra said it doesn’t comment on private conversations, according to a spokesperson.
Meg Keen, a senior fellow at the Lowy Institute think tank, said the recording is likely to raise pressure on Canberra to ensure the policing agreement is seen to be rolled out jointly with the Pacific island nations involved.
“Now Australia is really going to have to deliver on the line that this is Pacific led, Australia financed,” she said.
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