Australia, 2013

As a freshly minted Foreign

Minister, I am delighted to take part in this general

debate. Only a few weeks ago, Australia held national

elections and chose a new Government. Only nine

days ago, I was sworn in as Australia’s thirty-eighth

Minister for Foreign Affairs. A change of Government

is a significant national decision. It has happened only

seven times in our country since the Second World War.

Australia is an open, liberal democracy. We

recognize our good fortune in having an unbroken

record of peaceful democratic transition stretching

back to 1901. The United Nations offers that same ideal

of peace and order in relations among States. It gives us

a place to resolve our differences and to be heard on the

concerns that matter most.

There is an intrinsic connection between the

security and stability of Governments and economic

development. Good Governments understand that

providing a secure and stable environment for their

citizens is their most fundamental task, but that task

is tied inextricably to the strength of their economy.

Economic growth, development and trade are the key

drivers of national and international prosperity, and a

vital support for global security. That is why the new

Australian Government will put economic diplomacy

at the centre of our foreign policy.

We will promote responsible economic governance

and open trading systems that support export-oriented

economies. We recognize that a strong business sector,

open trading rules and liberal foreign investment policies

can foster economic growth and, with it, opportunities

to achieve prosperity and security. Strong economies

give nations and their people an environment in which

to build their lives — to make choices for the lives they

want to lead. Strong, open economies foster sustainable

growth. We understand that from our experience in

Australia and in our region.

Australia’s economic success and high standards

of living are anchored in reform efforts over many

years. We liberalized our economy and unilaterally

dismantled trade barriers and protectionist policies. In

our own region, as economies have opened, standards of

living have improved. We have witnessed the enormous

growth of the middle class in South-East Asia. Estimates

suggest that approximately 145 million people will be

considered middle-class in 2015, up from 95 million in

2010. In Asia more broadly, we expect a middle class

of over 3 billion people by 2030. Indonesia, currently

the world’s sixteenth-largest economy, is on track to be

the world’s seventh-largest economy by 2030. China

and India are projected to become the largest and third

-largest economies by 2030. Over 290 million people in

China were lifted out of poverty in the decade between

1999 and 2009.

The Secretary-General has rightly focused our

attention this week on the needs of the poor, the

commitment we made to them over a decade ago, and

our vision for the future. We need to finish the job on

the Millennium Development Goals. Beyond 2015, we

must prioritize sustainable economic growth in the

global development framework. We must provide the

opportunity for all people, including people with a

disability, to lead healthy and productive lives, leaving

no one behind. We must support women’s economic

participation and empowerment.

The future of peace will be built on economic

prosperity. Aid is an important part of delivering

sustainable economic growth around the world. It

plays a significant role in supporting economic reforms

and good governance, promoting the rule of law and

building the productive capacity of trade-related

sectors. But it is the effectiveness of aid delivery that

matters. For example, infrastructure deficiencies that

prevent developing economies from fully engaging in

the global markets need to be overcome. Estimates of

infrastructure financing needs, including for the roads

and ports required to facilitate trade, dwarf global

aid. According to the Asian Development Bank, Asia

alone will require $750 billion annually over the next

decade to meet its infrastructure needs. This compares

to annual global aid flows of $130 billion. Only the

private sector has the capacity to mobilize the financing

necessary for such massive infrastructure investments.

There is a role for aid in helping to overcome the

obstacles to investment. It must attract, but should

never replace, private-sector capital. The returns are

high. A joint report of the World Trade Organization

and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and

Development estimates that every dollar invested in

aid-for-trade can lift exports from developing countries

by $8.

We firmly believe that the economic growth of

developing countries can be unlocked through trade.

Australia will continue to promote trade liberalization

through the World Trade Organization, through

regional and sector-specific deals, and through bilateral

free trade negotiations. The Australian Government

aims to build a network of bilateral and regional

free-trade agreements. We will work in the World

Trade Organization to rebuild the multilateral trading

agenda. Australia puts the highest priority on global

economic reform and trade liberalization as the best

way to secure jobs and economic growth. These will be

key themes for us as we chair the Group of 20 in 2014.

No one should pretend that the economic sphere

exists in isolation from other parts of our human

experience. Economic progress alone is not sufficient.

We need to ensure that all people around the world are

free to fully exercise their economic, civil and political

rights. Australia was one of eight nations involved in

drafting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

and in 1948 the Australian President of the General

Assembly, our Foreign Minister Mr. H. V. Evatt,

oversaw the adoption of the Declaration (see A/PV.183).

Since then, Australia has been at the forefront of

defending human rights globally and regionally in support

of equality and fundamental freedoms — freedom

from discrimination; freedom from slavery, torture,

arbitrary arrest, detention or exile; freedom of speech,

conscience and religion; freedom to work, to enjoy

health and education and to participate in the life of

the community. Importantly, these freedoms must

extend to all women and girls, including through equal

access to employment, resources, education and health

services, and they must be underpinned by robust and

independent legal systems to enforce economic, social

and political rights.

Australia will continue to promote and protect

human rights standards around the world. That is

why we are seeking membership of the Human Rights

Council for the 2018-2020 term.

The situation in Syria is an urgent security and

humanitarian crisis we must address. Left unchecked,

it will continue to cause great human suffering and

further destabilize the region. Along with the rest of the

world, Australia has condemned the horrific chemical

weapons attack on 21 August, as we have condemned

the Al-Assad regime’s use of conventional weapons

against its own people.

The first obligation of any Government is to protect

its own citizens. In 2005, leaders of all States Members

of the United Nations signed on to this principle in the

World Summit Outcome on the responsibility to protect

(resolution 60/1). Australia, as current President of the

Security Council, will therefore co-sponsor a draft

resolution before the Council that condemns in the

strongest terms any use of chemical weapons. The draft

resolution will make clear, for the first time, that the use

of chemical weapons is a threat to international peace

and security, and in doing so set a new international

norm that will help to deter future use. It will say that

those responsible for using such weapons must be

brought to justice — a call we strongly endorse.

We welcome the fact that draft resolution sets

out in no uncertain terms that the Al-Assad regime

must comply fully with the requirement to destroy its

chemical weapons. The Organization for the Prohibition

of Chemical Weapons now needs strong international

support for its role in the destruction of Syria’s chemical

weapons.

Australia will also continue to press for the Council

to take action to assist the humanitarian effort in Syria

and, of course, provide our full backing to efforts to

find a political solution in accordance with the Geneva

communiqué (S/2012/523, annex) that leads to a

cessation of violence and a political transition which

meets the aspirations of all Syrians.

But we cannot just focus on a single instance of

global security, for we are engaged on security challenges

around the world, including in the Indo-Pacific region.

Through our Security Council membership, we draw on

lessons learned from our experience in peacekeeping

and peacebuilding and take forward initiatives that

are meaningful to our region. We welcome the strong

support which the Security Council gave yesterday to

Australia’s resolution 2117 (2013) on small arms and

light weapons. These weapons are a major driver of

many conflicts that are brought to the attention of the

Council.

When Australia led the Regional Assistance

Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) 13 years

ago with our friends from New Zealand, Papua New

Guinea and other countries of the Pacific, one of the

first tasks the Mission faced was to restore peace and

security. RAMSI moved quickly to secure the surrender

of firearms — an early and decisive action that

underpinned the peace that was built and maintained

over the next 10 years. And women played a crucial

part.

That is why, throughout the Pacific, we are

supporting efforts to strengthen women’s participation

in policing, through recruitment, retention, training

and mentoring support. In the Philippines, Australia

is funding women’s participation in peace processes

that bring together Muslim, Christian and indigenous

women. And we continue to build on our record on

security, disarmament and peacekeeping. As co-author

of the draft resolution, we worked to secure the adoption

of the world’s first Arms Trade Treaty (resolution

67/234 B), which has now been signed by the majority

of the United Nations membership, with a further 18

signatories being obtained during the course of this

week.

Outside of the Council, we work directly with

countries in our region to build their security. Australia

commends the efforts of Timor-Leste and the Group of

Seven Plus countries emerging from conflict, including

Solomon Islands and Afghanistan, in their efforts to

promote the rule of law, civil and political institutions

and a strong private sector.

The United Nations is a vital forum for the security

and prosperity of our world. That is what Harry

Truman, President of the United States at the time the

United Nations was founded, imagined when he spoke

of a “world fabric of international security and growing

prosperity”. No community can build lives, families

and nations in the absence of stability, predictability

and security. No country can ensure the security of its

people without an economy that offers them the dignity

to pursue lives they value.

As you have made clear, Mr. President, the task the

United Nations takes on this year and next, setting the

stage for the post-2015 development agenda, is one that

could set the course of humankind for decades to come.

On behalf of the people of Australia, I wish all nations

well in taking on that task, and commit Australia to play

its part. Together, we will strive to build the prosperity

that underpins and supports international peace and

security.