Kenny Heatley, host: Joining us now is Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Matt Thistlethwaite. Matt, good to see you. So, Donald Trump is meeting a list of world leaders and quite an extensive one at that. Why not us again?
Matt Thistlethwaite, Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade: G'day, Kenny. I think we should see this as a good thing because it means that the President who's been meeting with world leaders to try and reach agreements on trade policy, he's trying to do deals with other nations around tariffs and trade policy. He doesn't need to do that with Australia. We've got an agreement and that's been reaffirmed by the phone call that occurred recently between the Prime Minister and the President locking in that 10% tariff which is the lowest rate that any nation has secured. So, what we've got here is Australia getting a good deal out of the United States when it comes to trade policy. So, there's no need for any further follow up meeting. We've had pretty good commitments that AUKUS will be maintained and we'll continue on that important defence relationship into the future. And I think it's a sign that the relationship between Australia and the United States is strong.
Heatley: Does that mean that there'll be no further progress on trade with the United States for the rest of the Trump administration term?
Assistant Minister: Well, obviously we believe that there shouldn't be any tariffs between Australia and the United States. We've got a free trade agreement that attempts to remove those tariffs. Nonetheless, this US Administration has sought to go down that path and obviously we respect that. That's a decision for a sovereign nation to be able to make. But we've been able to negotiate what is one of the best deals in the world regarding a general tariff. There's been higher tariffs on steel and aluminum products, obviously that we'd like to see come down. We'll continue to negotiate, to try and reap, remove some of those impediments. But I think we have to say at the moment it's the best deal that any nation has secured and that's a good thing for Australia.
Heatley: Anthony Albanese has used his first speech at the UN to compare Palestine's statehood aspirations to that of Jewish people's hope of a homeland in Israel. Are you worried about how Australia's Jewish community will interpret that?
Assistant Minister: Well, I've got a strong Jewish community and like all Australians, there's mixed views. Some support what we're doing regarding Palestinian statehood, some don't. But we believe that it's the right thing to do by Australians and it's the right thing to do to produce a lasting peace in the Middle East. This is a conflict that's been going for 77 years. And I think that the world has said enough is enough. And that's why Australia and the United Kingdom and Canada this week have pledged to recognise a Palestinian state. But we're not alone, Kenny. We're joining 150 nations throughout the world who have come together to recognise Palestinian statehood because those nations believe that the best way to finally resolve this long lasting conflict is to have two countries coexisting side by side, respecting the right of each other to exist behind internationally recognised borders.
Heatley: And does it bother you at all that terror group Hamas has celebrated Australia's recognition of the state of Palestine and that the US believes that it rewards Hamas?
Assistant Minister: Hamas don't want this, Hamas are explicitly --
Heatley: They seem pretty happy about it.
Assistant Minister: But Hamas are explicitly opposed to two states. They don't believe that Israel has the right to exist. And we have a different view to that. We've always said that Israel must exist, must have a secure country, but so should Palestine. And the best way to achieve that is, is with two states. And that's the way that you're going to get a lasting peace. That's the way you resolve a lot of these issues associated with settlement activity that have been the cause of a lot of this conflict. And we've always said that Hamas cannot be involved in the administration of the Palestinian state. And it's great to see that the neighbours, neighbouring countries around that area have said a similar thing. The Arab League of nations have said that Hamas needs to now demilitarise and get out of Palestine. And that's a good thing.
Heatley: Israel is adamant that a Palestinian state will not exist. That position has not changed for decades. So, will Western nations like Australia need to start placing sanctions on Israel?
Assistant Minister: Well, we believe that the best way is to try and negotiate an outcome here. And that's why we use bodies like the United Nations. It was set up in the wake of World War II to avoid those atrocities that we saw committed against Jews throughout the period of the Second World War. And we believe that international forums such as the United Nations General Assembly are the best way to try and produce these outcomes through negotiation. And we'd urge Israel and the Palestinians to try and negotiate an outcome around issues such as final settlements and things like that.
Heatley: And is the Palestinian state the Albanese Government recognised as subject to the borders of 1967?
Assistant Minister: Yeah, that's the generally recognised solution that comes out of the United Nations General Assembly resolutions and Security Council resolutions. That's what's been internationally recognised. And that's the borders that Australia and the world recognised through this resolution that's being debated at the United Nations General Assembly this week. That's been a long standing position that many countries, including Australia, have had and it was based on, you know, negotiations that occurred a very, very long time ago that the party saw as the best way to produce a final resolution to this conflict and a lasting peace.
Heatley: Matt Thistlethwaite, appreciate it. Thank you for coming on the program.
Assistant Minister: Thanks.