 Ladies and gentlemen, good evening and welcome to the magnificent Sydney Town Hall for the 2023 Lowy Lecture and Dinner in this, the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Lowy Institute. We're honoured that in this special year the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, has agreed to deliver the 2023 Lowy Lecture. I'm Michael Fulila, the Executive Director of the Lowy Institute. Let me begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land on which the Town Hall stands, the Gadigal of the Eora Nation. I pay my respects to their elders, past and present. Ladies and gentlemen, as you entered the Town Hall this evening, you might have seen some protesters outside. I guess for the PM, it's a new experience to have the left yelling at him at Sydney Town Hall. For so many years, I guess it was the right yelling at him at Sydney Town Hall. But ladies and gentlemen, it's fine because the peaceful exercise of free speech is a foundational element of our democracy and we respect the rights of those outside to exercise that freedom. This is one of the wonderful things about our country. Russia doesn't allow protests in Moscow. Australia's citizens are free to protest. Of course, freedom of speech is not limited to those with loud halers. There is a place for loud protest and there is also a place for the calm measured discussion of complicated issues for debates that are respectful based on facts not misinformation, free from anti-Semitism as well as Islamophobia with input from the best thinkers from around the world. And this has been the mission of the Lowy Institute for the past two decades. We aim not to create heat but to throw light. To thicken the debate in Australia about the world and to project Australian voices abroad. To help develop the best, most effective, most ambitious policies for Australian governments. To ensure that Australia is known for its intellectual resources, not just its natural resources. Ladies and gentlemen, when we look out at the world today, it can be hard not to be dispirited by everything that's happening. We're nearly two years into Russia's unprovoked, unjustified and brutal invasion of Ukraine. Under President Biden's leadership, the United States has returned to the international community but the orange specter of Donald Trump's return to the White House is playing on all our minds. Until quite recently, Australia was at daggers drawn with our most important economic partner, China. And on the 7th of October, the terrorist organization Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1200 Israelis. The resulting conflict and destruction has roiled the region and the world. And all the while, of course, the planet continues to heat up. But it's not all bad news. We have come through a devastating pandemic with the aid of brilliant scientific advances. From President Zelensky down, Ukrainians are demonstrating remarkable courage in the defense of their country. I'm proud that, along with the United States and the UK and Europe, Australia is part of democracy's arsenal. But of course, it is Ukrainians who are serving in democracy's bodyguard. With Joe Biden in the White House, the most powerful country in the world is now being led by a decent human being, something that couldn't be said only a few years ago. And over the past year, Australia's relationship with China has stabilised. Ladies and gentlemen, these are the issues on which the researchers at the institute work. Our headquarters on Bly Street is a beautiful building. But it's the remarkable people who work there who make it such a special place. There have been several generations now of Lowy Institute staff, many of whom are here tonight. And along with the Lowy family, our board and all our supporters, the institute staff has created this precious asset for Australia. Tonight, I'd like to acknowledge two individuals whom we lost this year, Alan Ginjal, the institute's first executive director, and Bob O'Neill, a former board member of the institute, Vale, Alan and Bob. Let me also take this opportunity to thank all the institute's corporate and government supporters, as well as the major sponsors of the 2023 Lowy Lecture, Amazon, BHP and Center Group, and a key supporter, Boeing. Ladies and gentlemen, 2023 is a special year for us. It marks two decades since Sir Frank Lowy established the Lowy Institute. Since then, the institute has produced outstanding research, such as the Asia Power Index, the Pacific Aid Map, the Southeast Asia Aid Map, the Global Diplomacy Index and of course the Lowy Institute poll. We've published nearly 50 of our flagship Lowy Institute papers and nearly 500 other reports, analyses and policy briefs. We've published nearly 20,000 articles on the interpreter and we've hosted several thousand events with some of the most interesting and important figures in the world, Joe Biden, Angela Merkel, Volodymyr Zelensky, Lesion Long, Henry Kissinger and nine Australian Prime Ministers. To mark our 20th anniversary, we've struck a special commemorative coin and if you look at your place settings, you'll see that we've left a coin for each of you as a gift. You'll see the design incorporates an image of our headquarters at 31 Bly Street on the reverse side. We hope this is a nice keepsake. Ladies and gentlemen, in a minute, I will introduce the chairman of the Institute, Sir Frank Lowy. But before we hear from Frank, we'd like to give you a sense of what the Institute has accomplished over the past year and over the past two decades. What is the Lowy Institute about is to bring the world to Australia and Australia to the world. Two decades ago, there was a sense that the world was becoming increasingly connected, but that Australia was not taking full advantage of that. And Frank Lowy saw that this was a risk, but also an opportunity. The Institute's ambitions were to contribute to Australian policy, inform the Australian public and also project Australian voices abroad. We would be independent, nonpartisan and evidence driven. And we would be host to the widest range of unions, but the advocate unknown. Our research today is globally recognised for its analysis on the shifting balance of power, regional aid flows and climate finance, the rise of China and India, Southeast Asia between the superpowers and public attitudes on the world. The Institute has innovated with distinctive and evidence driven perspectives on international trends. We bridge economic, security and development issues with cross cutting data analysis. The Lowy Institute has also become known around the world for its convening power. Each year, our beautiful headquarters in the heart of Sydney host dozens of events where the most important issues of our time are debated. The contribution the Lowy Institute has made to discourse around foreign policy and national security issues that ripple far beyond the land down under and very much impact the debates and discussions we're having here in the United States. Lowy Institute research is cited by presidents and quoted in leading international newspapers and media. We have become an influential voice in global conversation. I think you're doing a wonderful job at the Lowy Institute and I know the founder of it. It's a wonderful evolution of what he tried to do. The international system is changing before our eyes. Frank Lowy's original mission has only become more urgent to deepen the debate in Australia about the world and to give Australia a greater voice abroad. The Institute bears my name but the Institute is you. Not bad, huh? Ladies and gentlemen, Sir Frank Lowy is one of Australia's most significant business leaders and philanthropists. Frank survived the Holocaust and emigrated to Australia in 1952. He arrived with nothing. He went on to have a tremendous impact on our country as the Chairman of Westfield, the Chairman of Football Federation Australia, the President of the New South Wales Art Gallery, among many other offices. I've been lucky to work with Frank for 21 years. I'm privileged to call him not just a boss and a mentor but a friend. Ladies and gentlemen, Sir Frank Lowy. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the 20th birthday party of the Lowy Institute. I'm very pleased that the Prime Minister, Bernice, is with us tonight. It's really an honor for us to have you here this evening. Ladies and gentlemen, some years ago I was doing a lot of traveling around the world, particularly when I was the Chairman of Westfield. And sometimes I was away for weeks and was looking for news about Australia. And no matter where I was, I could hardly find anything written about Australia, except when we either won or lost a cricket match or created or held a successful tennis tournament. And it bothered me very much. Seriously bothered me. Here we have a great country like Australia doing well at democracy, at its core. It has accepted millions of immigrants who needed a home. And nothing is written about it. So on one of my travels I was with Peter, my son, looking at some shopping centers to build or sell or whatever I don't quite remember. And I was thinking of being my 50th anniversary of living in Australia. I wanted to do, wanted to make a gift to Australia, but I didn't know what to do. Of course I could have bought a building and put my name on it. And what does that mean? Besides that I have built many, many buildings and they don't mean that very much for me. So Peter and I were discussing what are the opportunities that could benefit Australia? Well, in the, I don't, it was quite a long discussion, but in the end Peter and I came up with the idea to create a think tank. Well, think tank, a factory for ideals. It's not so simple thing to build a think tank like maybe for me a shopping center, but I came home, I consulted with the rest of my family and the rest of the board of Westfield and they all fell in love with the idea to create a law institute, a factory for ideals for Australia. In my travels, when I haven't seen Australia and it bothered me so much, I also thought that maybe it will give us an idea, not maybe, but with the objective of bringing Australia and the world closer together to each other and therefore benefit both Australia and both the world. And I'm pleased to say that we have achieved a great deal, but the job is never finished. It's only starting. So ladies and gentlemen, the gift that we decided on, we created it. But first of all, to build a think tank is not such an easy thing to do. Well, there's nothing to build so what do we do? So talking with my colleagues, Mark Ryan said that we need to have a study prepared before we know what we can do with to build the institute. And he pointed to a young man who is now sitting amongst you and the executive director of the Lowy Institute. And he took the job on, went around the world and went to see people who were already having a running think tank. And I asked him to go and see Martin Indy, who was involved in the think tank business to get some advice from him. So he said to Michael, Michael, tell Frank to buy an old building and make sure it's wood paneling there. So guess what happened? I started to look for an old building with wood paneling and I was fortunate to find that beautiful building in Blystley and I made a bid for it and I bought it. So now this represents the headquarters of the Lowy Institute. Now they are working, there are some, I think, 40, maybe 50 young people who are creating ideas and papers for Australia and for the world. And even they are even creating ideas for other parts of the country, other countries and other parts of the world and they are very well respected and read and listened to. Not so long ago we had a visitor from the world when she was Chancellor of Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel. And she came to Australia and she gave a lecture and she talked, all, they talked a lot of things to us and mentioned, not mentioned but really spoke seriously about the rule of Putin over Russia. Publicly, first time it was criticized, Putin was criticized for what he does and how he does it. So that single speech by Angela Merkel put the Lowy Institute, including Australia, more, more on the map than it was before. A number of other leaders of the world came, scientists, teachers, professors and diplomats. And I'm very pleased that I've started the Lowy Institute and I believe that it will cherish and live for a long, long time. Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen for coming. Thank you. Thank you very much, Frank Lowy. As Frank was speaking I was remembering some of the discussions that he and I had 21 years ago about this new think tank. And I remember pitching an idea to him and making a suggestion to him and Frank said, I like that idea but I'd like to do something bigger. Ladies and gentlemen, Frank Lowy thinks big and at the Institute we like to think we've inherited that trait from Frank. And we do appreciate the wood paneling, Chairman, at 31 Blystreet. In fact, you can tell we still have a taste for wood paneling here at the town hall. Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you how the rest of the evening will work. Shortly we'll serve entrees and then I'll invite Prime Minister Albanese to deliver the 2023 Lowy Lecture. After the PM's lecture we'll serve main courses and then because we like to provide value for money at the Lowy Institute we'll also hear from another special guest, CNN's Fareed Zakaria, who will give us a view from New York. Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy your entrees. Ladies and gentlemen, the Lowy Lecture is the Institute's signature event and it's now one of the world's premier lecture series. Each year we invite a prominent individual to reflect on the world. Past Lowy Lecturers include Angela Merkel, Boris Johnson, Ngozi Akonjo-Waila, Jake Sullivan, Fareed Zakaria who's with us this evening and several Australian Prime Ministers including John Howard who delivered the inaugural Lowy Lecture in 2005. It's an honour this evening to add a fourth Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese to this impressive roll call. Mr Albanese is a lifelong political warrior having entered federal parliament in 1996. During his parliamentary career he served in a number of portfolios including regional development, infrastructure and transport and as leader of the House and Deputy Prime Minister. In 2019 he became leader of the Federal Parliamentary Labor Party and in May 2022 he was elected the 31st Prime Minister of Australia. Mr Albanese became Prime Minister only a few months after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and I would say his Prime Minister's ship has been defined to an unusual degree by international affairs. Within days hours in fact I think of being elected he flew to Tokyo for a meeting of Quad leaders. He's recently returned from visits to Washington DC to meet with US President Joe Biden and Beijing to meet with China's President Xi Jinping. So ladies and gentlemen there couldn't be a better time to hear from the Prime Minister at the end of such a consequential year. Prime Minister Albanese it's my pleasure to invite you to deliver the 2023 Lowy lecture. Well thanks very much Michael. I also begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we're meeting this evening and pay my respect to elders past present and emerging and it is indeed a great honour to have been invited to deliver the annual Lowy lecture particularly on this 20th anniversary that we celebrate tonight. Because the Lowy Institute has been an important part of our national discourse for those two decades. It is a great gift to Australia from Sir Frank Lowy a man who has found so many ways to add to the fabric of our nation. Sir Frank's story is of course an extraordinary one. A story that began on the other side of the world and became a quintessentially Australian one. A 13 year old boy in wall ravaged Budapest torn between the realities of survival in the city under the fist of the Nazis and the Hungarian Arrow Cross and the fading hope that his father would one day come home. Life hurled everything at him yet we see the man that Sir Frank Lowy became what he made possible here in Australia and ultimately what he made possible for Australia. I also want to recognise that tonight is the first Lowy lecture since the passing of your founding executive director and one of Australian foreign policies finest writers and thinkers Alan Gingel. Alan famously said that the world is a messy place and because of that foreign policy involves an unceasing cycle of action and reaction in response to an inconceivably complex set of variables. That relentless complexity speaks for the world of today more economically connected than ever before but also more politically fragmented. A world confronting new flashpoints old fault lines ongoing tests of the rules based order and resurgent challenges to free societies and open economies. An ongoing land war in Europe. A conflict in the Middle East following the 7 October terrorist attack by Hamas that has claimed thousands of innocent lives in mere months. Climate change and the risk it presents to the stability of national economies populations and borders and closest to home fundamental geopolitical change and intensifying strategic competition. Upholding Australia's security in this time of volatility means managing urgent and competing pressures and engaging with complex and fast moving situations. And yet the decisions the government makes in these moments must be informed by much more than a cycle of action and reaction. What we do and decide cannot be an unconnected set of responses that look no further than the end of the day. Our actions have to be anchored in a strategic framework and shaped by an overarching vision for Australia's future and our place in the world. Through our first 18 months in office our government's approach to Australia's foreign policy and our national security has been defined by a complementary focus on investing in both our capabilities but also investing in our relationships investing in our deterrence and our diplomacy. This reflects our recognition of Australia's interests but also speaks for our belief in Australia's agency. The role we can play in our region where prosperity is driven by shared opportunity and stability must always be secured by collective responsibility. This is the contribution Australia can make as a middle power in the Indo-Pacific safeguarding a region of rules and rights where every nation large and small is free to pursue its own destiny and secure its own future. A region where the sovereignty of every nation is respected and the dignity of every individual is upheld. Where we all contribute to regional peace and stability because we recognize that a more secure world benefits us all. It's often said that what happens on the world stage matters to Australia but we are not just observers of the interplay of others' ambitions and our foreign policy is not just a catalogue of things that happen to us. What Australia says and does on the world stage matters to our security our prosperity to the strength and stability of the region we call home. That's why it matters that we take our seat at the table and have our voice heard in the debate making ourselves part of the solution to climate change re-energizing our role in regional and multilateral forums restoring our relationship with the Pacific family so we are the reliable partner they look to first supporting the fundamental guardrail of dialogue between the United States of America and the People's Republic of China and putting dialogue at the core of our own international and regional engagement because even when issues are contested we will always achieve better outcomes where we can deal directly and honestly at a decision-making level. Putting a priority on communication over confrontation does not mean choosing the easy course it's not a matter of Australia opting out of the hard work of defence and security. Peace is always hard work and defence and security are central to the task. Peace must be built preserved defended and upheld we don't need to look too far back in history or too far from home to remind ourselves of the devastating toll of the alternative and this is why when I talk about investing in our capability and investing in our relationships the concept of investment is deliberate and it is important first because engagement depends on our active agency however deep the sentiment or rich the history our bilateral and multilateral ties are not self-fulfilling or self-sustaining they are a full-time test of our commitment Advancing Australia's interests and delivering outcomes demands resources and it demands results it takes time and attention and it requires more than a measure of patience and perseverance as well and second because when Australia invests in our region and the world we get a return the dividend of peace is measured in decades of extraordinary growth and prosperity for the people of our region and like every other nation that has benefited from this framework of freedoms and fairness Australia has a solemn responsibility to uphold it and defend it that's why even though we are half a world away from Ukraine we are proudly one of the largest non-nato contributors to its military and humanitarian needs we stand with Ukraine in support of its courageous people and also in defence of a fundamental principle the right of every sovereign nation to be secure in its own borders and to determine its own future we have taken the same principled approach to the crisis in the Middle East from the moment we learned of those horrific attacks on October 7th our government has condemned mass and called for the release of all hostages we mourn the loss of every innocent life in this conflict whether it's Israeli or Palestinian because every innocent life matters we'll continue to make it clear there is no place for prejudice or hatred anti-Semitism or Islamophobia here in our society Australia recognises that Israel has the right to defend itself and the way it does so matters which is why we have called on Israel to respect international humanitarian law this means civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected and humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in desperate need the recent pause in hostilities in Gaza allowed for the release of more than 100 hostages and supported an increase in humanitarian access to affected civilians Australia wants to see this pause resumed and we support urgent international efforts towards a sustainable ceasefire we have said all along this cannot be one sided Hamas must release all hostages immediately and unconditionally it must stop using Palestinian civilians as human shields and it must lay down its arms and I reiterate what I said in parliament in October Hamas is the enemy not the Palestinian people there can be no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza and Gaza must not be used as a future platform for terrorism none of us should have been in hope in the ultimate goal a two state solution with Israelis and Palestinians living securely and prosperously within internationally recognized borders without any doubt Australia's future prosperity and security will be defined by the strength and success of our engagement in the region we call home John Curtin's decision to recall Australian forces from the Middle East for combat against Japan in New Guinea is widely held to represent the beginning of Australia setting our own foreign policy it also represents the first anchoring of Australian strategic policy in Asia and the Pacific when Curtin spoke of the battle for Australia he made it clear that we had to fight to secure our continent and our home that anchoring of Australian strategic policy in our region has been a core tenet of Labor defense and foreign policy ever since we saw it when Gough Whitlam founded our diplomatic relationship with China and established our partnership with Asia Bob Hawk and Paul Keating then amplified Australia's interests on a pan regional basis first by establishing the APEC forum and then through Keating elevating it to include the whole Pacific Rim at a leader level Kevin Rudd built on this work with his role in the expansion of the East Asia Summit and the elevation of the G24 and during the GFC through the 80s and 90s a period of profound change in the world Australia established the enduring geopolitical architecture of the region a mighty achievement for a middle power the challenge and the opportunity for our generation is to reinforce and expand upon those achievements to act in the best tradition of Labor governments and in doing so advance the best interests of the Australian people this means modernizing those existing frameworks and forums so they can empower us in new economic security and energy progress maintaining and strengthening a strategic balance that can adapt to a changing region and seeking out new opportunities for deepening our bilateral ties for our government this work begins with Indonesia I'm pleased to say that Australia and Indonesia are making remarkable progress towards the defence cooperation agreement this is something that President Widodo and I have discussed on a number of occasions and the progress we have made is a credit to the work of the Deputy Prime Minister Richard Miles in particular this new agreement will be binding under international law elevating our defence partnership and enabling new ways for us to work together it will be underpinned by the Lombok Treaty and it speaks above all for the deep and important trust between our two nations together with our new strategic partnership with the Philippines our government's actions are making it plain that Australia is seeking our security in Asia not from it and the same is true for our prosperity more than any other part of the world Asia is where Australia's economic destiny lies our government has made clear our strong and continuing commitment to ASEAN centrality we also recognise that for too long the economies of ASEAN have not been central to Australia's economic thinking business investment in the region has been stagnant people-to-people connections under resourced and trade well short of its potential this weakens our presence and it weakens our relevance the new strategy we launched in Jakarta in September is all about changing that it's called invested a set of strategic recommendations from Nicholas Moore around everything from energy transformation and supply change resilience to better business connections taken together they represent the most significant upgrade of Australia's economic engagement with ASEAN nations for a generation and we will be able to advance our strategic and economic partnership further when we host the ASEAN Australia special summit in Melbourne next March as with the nations of ASEAN Australia and India is another relationship that has been under done for far too long not enough work was done to turn the genuine ties of affection into tangible benefits for our peoples and economies I'm proud our government is taking our partnership with India to a new level both bilaterally and through the revitalised quad channeling our common histories and cultures into a greater sense of common cause including deeper strategic cooperation to maintain peace and security in the Indian and Pacific oceans and working to realise the enormous potential of our partnership in everything from clean energy to higher education and every step of the way our Indian diaspora are demonstrating how important and valuable they are in achieving this goal another reminder that our great multicultural society that we've built our diversity and our social cohesion are national treasures but they're also international assets for Australia to benefit from now seizing those new opportunities doesn't mean letting go of existing strengths Australia does not have to choose between deeper partnerships or a broader range of partners we can and must look to build both and that's why at the same time as we're boosting our security and economic cooperation with Southeast Asia we're building on our long-standing ties with Japan and the Republic of Korea even within those two partnerships we see the potential for greater depth and diversity Australia will continue to be a reliable energy provider to the powerhouse economies of North Asia as we help drive their transformation to clean energy and deepen our security collaboration because energy security is economic security and it is national security for more than half a century Australia has been the single largest economic security and development partner in the Pacific we engage as partners as neighbors and as equals by respecting institutions like the Pacific Islands Forum and promoting unity in the Pacific family and this is where I particularly want to acknowledge the extraordinary work and extraordinary stamina it must be said foreign minister Penny Wong and minister for the Pacific Pat Conroy who's here this evening and neighbors understand the reality is strategic competition in addition to the issues they face in building more resilient communities and stronger economies we must engage on those interconnected challenges because climate change is a security issue in the Pacific more than anywhere else just as economic development and infrastructure including digital connectivity through subsea cables is essential to the stability of the region the historic agreement that we have struck with tovalu is a powerful example of engaging with this combination of priorities its safeguard sovereignty provides security against rising sea levels and it respects the inherent dignity of that nation and its people this is the most significant piece of Pacific diplomacy Australia has been part of since our support for Papua New Guinea's independence and it's a reminder of how Australia can play to our unique strengths the opportunities that only we can offer our neighbors that's the spirit of our new Pacific engagement visa which comes into effect next year and the improvements we've made to the Pacific Australia Labor Mobility Scheme in a region where more than one third of people live on less than a thousand dollars a year palm workers send home an average of fifteen hundred dollars a month boosting Pacific economies and lifting families out of poverty but also at the same time benefiting Australia filling urgent gaps in our workforce particularly in regional communities and in areas such as age care our region is drawn closer by these economic and social connections the personal ties that bind and that's also the beauty of a team from Papua New Guinea taking part in the national rugby league a taps into a passion and a culture that people in our two nations share when I had the privilege of being the first foreign leader to address the PNG parliament in Port Moresby in January this year I made it clear that Australia was looking to finalize a bilateral security agreement with our nearest neighbour our close friend and our fellow democracy and I'm pleased that we're able to sign that agreement when Prime Minister Marapa visited Canberra this month and I look forward to welcoming him for his address to our parliament in February next year the first Pacific island leader to be extended this invitation our government's careful methodical and respectful approach has delivered significant progress in the Pacific we're brought the same sense of calm and consistency to the work of stabilizing our relationship with China we're clear-eyed about the situation mindful that for all the chains that the Australia and China relationship has undergone through 50 years now we remain two nations with very different values and political systems I've said before that China does not see itself as a status quo power it seeks a region and a world that is much more accommodating of its ambitions and its interests and yet it is always important to make the point that China's extraordinary and unparalleled economic achievements have been made possible by our region's commitment to peace freedom of navigation and respect for sovereignty this is where our government's patient calibrated and deliberate approach to managing this relationship is so important we've put a focus on rebuilding dialogue and my visit to Beijing and Shanghai last month was another step in this process this doesn't mean compromising any of Australia's core interests or values in fact we use dialogue to advance those interests and articulate those values to advocate for the rules-based order to assert our commitment to human rights and to affirm the peace and stability that has benefited both of our nations our approach has seen ministerial meetings resume student exchange and tourism revived and the resumption of cooperation in central areas including climate change and consular issues and I'm pleased that most of the impediments to trade have now been removed opportunities for our farmers producers and exporters in barley hay coal and timber and wine are back on track between January and October last year Australia exported 194 million dollars worth of those products to China in the same period this year it was 8.5 billion by the end of this year it will exceed 10 billion and much more next year more than one in four Australian jobs relies on trade and our single biggest trading partner is of course China the position we outlined on first coming to government has guided us and will continue to we will cooperate where we can disagree where we must but we will engage in our national interest this is a principled and practical way of managing complexity that is delivering benefits for Australia but also delivering benefits for China and delivering benefits for the region as we take stock at the end of 2023 we can see that in every part of the world Australia is working to turn agreement into action to convert dialogue into delivery we are revitalising our bonds with the Pacific family stabilising our relationship with China and contributing to strategic balance in the region modernising our engagement with Asia more broadly and turning our alliance with the United States to face the future the people of Australia and the United States share a history of sacrifice in the cause of peace we hold a common commitment to democracy freedom and equality those enduring values guide us but they also bind us but ours is not just an alliance of rich history and deep affection it is a pact between two Pacific nations the submarine technology we're securing through AUKUS will deliver Australia the single biggest boost to our defence and deterrence capability in our history it will transform our ability to contribute to the stability and security of the region the passing of the AUKUS legislation through the US Congress last week is a historic achievement this will enable the transfer of Virginia class submarines to Australia and revolutionise the way our technology research and defence industries cooperate this is the innovation alliance that President Biden talks about one way of strengthening through new engagement in technology quantum computing and cyber security in May this year President Biden and I signed the Australia United States climate critical minerals and clean energy transformation compact a third pillar to the Australia and United States alliance to stand alongside our security and economic cooperation the biggest economic and technological change of any of our lifetimes is underway we can help shape it and share its opportunities not by seeking to compete with or outbid the inflation reduction act but by deriving the maximum benefit from it moving Australia up the international value chain in critical minerals energy and manufacturing that's our objective can I conclude tonight with this I said earlier that foreign policy cannot merely be a catalogue of things that are happening to us nor should we treat it only as a survey of the challenges and obstacles we face when our government invests in Australia's capability when we invest in our relationships we're not seeking to hold back a changing world or isolate ourselves from it we are investing in Australia's capacity to shape the future and to share in the benefits of change to seize the opportunities global energy and technology transformation to re anchor ourselves as an economic security and development partner of choice in our region to power the next wave of economic and infrastructure growth in North Asia to partner with our allies in new fields of innovation with new skills and opportunities to use our status as an influential middle power to help secure the peace and security that underpins our prosperity we will always face difficult challenges and complex choices but we should not lose sight of the fact that this remains a time of profound opportunity that's why we will continue to engage we will continue to use Australia's agency to advance Australia's interests securing our home strengthening our region and shaping our future thanks very much for having me PM thanks for giving us a thoughtful and important lecture that will be read closely in capitals around the region and around the world and thank you for agreeing to take a few questions from me when I introduced you I said that your prime ministership has been defined to an unusual degree by international relations let me ask you to what extent have you found that a career in domestic politics prepares you for foreign policy making well I think it yeah it it does I'll make two points one is that you pick up hopefully some skills in this Sydney Town Hall at a New South Wales ALP conference where you've got a you've got to work a room with 900 delegates and you've got to turn that into 51 so you learn about just delivering relations through a period and there's no tougher forum than a New South Wales ALP conference from time to time it must be said I think I I got a big advantage by the fact that the election was the 21st of May and by the morning of the 23rd of May I'd been sworn in quicker than any any prime minister in our history and was on my way to Japan for the Quad Leaders Summit with President Biden, Prime Minister Kishida and Prime Minister Modi and that meant there wasn't time to try to mould me in terms of you know some of the officials who might have said this is exactly what you've got to say and how I was just me elbow unplugged absolutely a dangerous thought some of them might have might have worried about at the time but I was pretty comfortable I just walked in after a long campaign during which I had covered as well which made it more difficult of course but I just engaged with them the way that I would engage with people at other forums I had had experience at being transport minister in international forums of aviation and shipping and other other forums but a long period in the late party and in the parliament being leader of the house of a minority parliament we had 70 boats out of 150 I had to turn that into 76 three or four times a day and we managed to do it throughout that the three years of the Gillard government so that I think was a useful place to start and then the first place for bilateral I visited because we committed for Indonesia to be the first place I would visit as our very important neighbour to our north and there once again I just engaged with President Widota we had our ride on the bamboo bike where we were discussing the transition of climate change clean energy we were discussing security issues began there as well and just just engaging one on one so I think it has in in today's world I know there's been some criticism suggestion for example I not go to the APEC meeting being hosted by President Biden but I would have been the first leader for 30 years to not have done so it's important that Australia engage it's important to our economy it's important to our jobs it's also important that we play that role in peace and security in the region all right speaking of peace and security let me ask you about the Israel Hamas conflict in your lecture tonight you said and I quote there can be no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza and Gaza must not be used as a future platform for terrorism so what then should become of Hamas given the atrocities it committed on October the 7th and who should govern Gaza after this war well the future governance has to be one that doesn't include Hamas it requires a more stable region requires something other than just security it requires a political solution as well and the statement that I issued with the Prime Minister of Canada and the Prime Minister of New Zealand who I'll meet with tomorrow was a part of that those principles that we put in there as well so you can't be encroachment on Gaza we talked about the issue of settlements as well that are an impediment to a two-state solution but we talked very much about Hamas being disarmed not playing a role in the future governance of Gaza and Gaza cannot be used as a site for terrorism and so that will require international engagement I think at this stage I've had discussions with the a number of leaders about what that might look like I don't think anyone has the perfect template at the moment but it's very clear that that distinction I think that the world needs to draw of drawing a distinction between Hamas and the Palestinian people is an important one because without doing that then I think that Israel and I'm a strong supporter of both Israel and the rights of Palestinians for justice I don't see a contradiction in that because we know that there can't be security in the region without a political solution and clearly the United States will play an important role but the international community has an important role to play as well all right finally let me ask you about two of your fellow leaders Joe Biden and Xi Jinping you mentioned earlier that relationships are just as important in international politics as domestic politics you've had a bit to do with both of them Biden hosted you in Washington Xi Jinping hosted you in Beijing what are your impressions of these two leaders what are they like as characters what are your hopes for Australia's relations with the two countries they lead the United States and China and for the bonus point how would things change if Donald Trump would replace Joe Biden as president well it certainly all comes to the last bit last because I'll give myself time to think that through Joe Biden and I clicked immediately I had met him before when he was Vice President and our careers have gone very similar paths we're both Catholic working class pro-union pro-social justice people who've served as deputies to in his case of course to President Obama in my case too to Kevin Rudd and both of us at various times were exceeded some of the expectations of the commentary no one here of course but we both get on exceptionally well like it's a natural relationship that we have and I think that that has been really important but the work that we've done there were countless articles saying that there was no chance that we would get through the August legislation through the Congress this year well we achieved it and that was this significant achievement the work we're doing on clean energy on climate we are working very closely together on new technology and on new challenges that are emerging as well such as artificial intelligence I was a long-term participant in the Australian American Leadership Dialogue is has been really important in developing those relationships and understanding of US politics Xi Jinping I've had the two formal meetings with other less formal discussions has been really positive I've got to say and I think that it is very much in Australia's interests for us to have a constructive relationship and dialogue with China one where as I've said you know we cooperate where we can disagree where we must but engage in our national interest and that has been encouraged as well by the the the US and by others I think see that as a positive thing in our region the relationships with the ASEAN countries they very much don't want a country like Singapore doesn't want to pick a team they want to see dialogue and engagement and one of the things I was really positive about was in my Shangri-La dialogue speech in Singapore earlier this year I spoke about the importance of guardrails and military to military communication and I certainly advocated that as well when I was in China but also I know the United States was very supportive of that and that's one of the things that came out of the Biden-Shi meeting that was very successful in San Francisco as well President Trump of course you know served a term as president the relationship emerged through that it's a different relationship that I have with President Biden I don't know President Trump but the relationship between Australia and the United States is not a relationship between individuals to relationship between nations based upon our common values based upon the history that we share as well and so it's up to the American people who they elect as president it's my job to work with governments that in democracy's case are elected and a democratic process is always is obviously something that we very much cherish as a core value very diplomatic PM thank you for taking my questions congratulations on getting the bonus point thank you for your low e-lecture ladies and gentlemen please enjoy your main courses and I'll be back soon to introduce Fareed Zakaria thank you ladies and gentlemen we now have a guest appearance by Fareed Zakaria who was our 2020 low e-lecturer Fareed was not able to deliver the 2020 lecture in person because of COVID and Fortress Australia it was a Zoom low e-lecture but we're delighted to be hosting him in Sydney this week and tonight at the Sydney Town Hall. Fareed is the host of Fareed Zakaria GPS on CNN he is a columnist for the Washington Post he's a best-selling author he is both a subtle analyst who can write a brilliant article for foreign affairs or the best-reviewed book that you'll ever see as well as a brilliant commentator who can explain the world to a broad audience it's a hard trick to master I know many people in the town hall tonight who watch his show each week so Fareed Zakaria let me now invite you to give us a view from New York thank you so much Michael thank you Prime Minister Sir Frank you know after that extraordinary confident assured intelligent address from the Prime Minister after Sir Frank's wonderful remarks about the founding of the Lowey Institute after Michael's comments I am reminded of the immortal words of Senator John Warner John Warner was the seventh husband of Elizabeth Taylor the famous screen actress you remember two of them numbers five and six were Richard Burton and when John Warner married Elizabeth Taylor he said I know what I'm supposed to do I just don't know how to make it interesting so I'm finding myself in that situation right now I'm not quite sure how to how to follow up on these these eminences but what I thought I'd do is address perhaps some something that I I sense in the air here tonight but around these kinds of groups almost everywhere in the world these days and that is a real apprehension that we are living in more difficult more challenging more fast-changing times than any ever before and perhaps more dangerous times and if you think about it threats to world order now emanate centrally in Europe itself where you have the first bloodiest war since World War two in the Middle East where you have an eruption of violence and sectarianism and hate and the challenge that are rising China presents to Asia but particularly in what happens in Taiwan all three happening simultaneously and at the same time of feeling that Western nations may be divided Michael was polite about the way in which he phrased the Trump challenge but it is a real challenge and it isn't just in the United States and I think what I want to remind us all is that this is not as unique a circumstances we might think you know if you go back to the year that the Lowy Institute was founded 20 years ago this that was a period of intense geopolitical uncertainty threat in danger these were the years after 9 11 the worst attack on American soil the single greatest loss of American life except for Antietam during the civil war and a period that made the United States wonder whether it was going to face this challenge of Islamic militancy and radicalism and terrorists coming in and and being able through asymmetrical means to terrorize not just America but the whole world forever and it launched two wars and by the end of 2003 it was pretty clear that neither was going very well or think back you know to Donald Trump always says he wants to make America great again and you wonder when he's talking about so I thought to myself well maybe go back 50 years you know the good old days 1973 when the United States was in the poised to lose its first major international conflict in Vietnam and cut and run where a surprise war shocked Israel and made it worry that it was on the verge of extinction because these were not bands of terrorists but the vast armies of countries like Egypt and Syria an oil embargo that tripled the price of oil the left inflation running so high that the west confronted something completely new in its history stagflation stagnation plus inflation and if that wasn't enough the Spanish Prime Minister was assassinated that year by Basque terrorists Richard Nixon was beginning the road to his resignation as the Watergate crisis became worse and worse you know it wasn't always that easy in the good old days and maybe the good old days weren't that good after all I think the reality is that we are living through extraordinarily challenging times because we are seeing a series of revolutions take place around the world there is the globalization revolution that the prime minister referred to the massive expansion of the trading economy there is the information revolution that has completely transformed the way we look and are looked at by other human beings through social media through the internet through cell phones and the like we have a new identity revolution where people are redefining who they are and how they think of themselves and asking whether they can walk out of the shadows and it's all happening at the same time as a geopolitical revolution in which you see the rise of China the return of Russia the creeping rise of a country like Iran subtly insinuating itself through militias and political groups all over the Middle East and these are tough challenges but what gives me enormous hope is that in fact the world of order if you will which I would put against the word of disorder is also very strong think of the world the coalition that the United States galvanized to combat the Soviet Union it was the United States Canada 12 countries in Europe three or four countries in Asia the rest of the world was either on the Soviet camp or undecided not aligned today you look at the world the coalition that has been galvanized around Russia's invasion of Ukraine it's 65 to 70 percent of global GDP the West plus if you want to think of it that way the free world the rules-based order has far more people that support it that want to move in that direction but they worry they worry about all these challenges they worry about internal realities and many of them worry because this time around you have many many more democracies all over the world and democracies are divided and they wash the we wash our dirty linen in public and so you see all those divisions all the time but never mistake those public divisions for weakness you know people often said during the Cold War that the Soviet Union was this monolith dictatorship that could plan for the long term take pain and the United States was this dysfunctional short-term oriented democracy well look at what happened and it's not just there and I know that some Australians worry whether the United States will be with them if things go badly over the next decades and I would simply say to you don't forget the United States of America is still on the banks of the Rhine it is still in Okinawa it is still in South Korea and it has been there for its allies for a hundred years while fascism and imperial Japanese power disappeared while communism cracked and crumbled while Islamic terror and ISIS and al-Qaeda have weakened to the point of almost being extinguished so while we have bad phases the United States had McCarthyism it had isolationism it has had all kinds of ups and downs in the end it's not a bad place to bet on but really what I'm saying is and I close with this thought it's not the United States you have to bet on what we are all betting is that the vision of the world that we have to offer is far more attractive than the alternatives and that most people given a choice gravitate to that vision of the world it is not a world order or world vision imposed by coercion but one that happens through voluntary ascent and if you want to understand why that is so attractive and why I think at the end of the day the forces of order of law and liberty will prevail look at two countries in Eastern Europe Poland and Ukraine in 1989 the Soviet Union cracks and crumbles and by the early 1990s it's absolutely clear that both Poland and Ukraine want to move westward they want to seek a destiny with the west with freedom with democracy with liberty Poland is able to do it given NATO membership given European Union membership Ukraine is not because of Russian pressure coercion influence corruption 30 years later those two countries started at the same per capita GDP in 1992 30 years later Poland has five times the per capita GDP of Ukraine and Ukrainians know that and more importantly the Poles live in a free society in a free country in a free continent in a free Europe that's what they want and they are showing every day that they are willing to fight the most bloody foe the most difficult war and they will keep fighting even if we were to falter even if we were to stop supporting them they would keep fighting and that sense of the stakes makes me confident that at the end of the day we're in the right place and the United States and Australia in particular are in the right place because as the Prime Minister said this is not just a relationship that is you know government to government the United States has a government to government relationship with Saudi Arabia but it has a people to people a culture to culture of values to values relationship with Australia and those I think are the deepest ties of all so I leave you just with the thought that at the end of the day it is quite likely that if 20 years from now we were celebrating Frank of course would still be here delivering those wonderful remarks we would look back and say we chose the right alliance we chose the right partners we chose the right values and we did all right in the end thank you all so much well I think that shows we didn't just choose the right alliance we didn't just choose the right partners we chose the right speakers this evening um Fareed Zakaria began by saying that like Elizabeth Taylor's last husband he knew what to do but he didn't know how to make it interesting but in fact he did make it interesting and he made it heartening and he made it memorable he reminded us of the strength of democracies and sometimes I certainly feel that we doubt ourselves and we see our weakness we don't see our strength we don't see the frailty of authoritarian systems and I'd like to associate myself with Fareed's remarks and I think especially since the invasion of Ukraine actually more of us have seen how strong we are as countries and the connections between democracies have quickened so thank you very much Fareed ladies and gentlemen if you're interested in hearing more of Fareed's thoughts I interviewed him for my podcast the director's chair yesterday Frank excuse me for the plug but Frank always tells me I'm in sales so I like to live up to that so while you download that episode of the podcast we're going to serve dessert and then I'll return to invite Gillian Broadbent to move the vote of thanks thank you ladies and gentlemen to move the vote of thanks it's my pleasure to call on Gillian Broadbent AC Gillian is one of the most experienced non-executive directors in Australia she's a director of Macquarie Group and the Sydney Dance Company as well as of course the Lowy Institute Gillian has served on many of our country's most important boards including the Reserve Bank Warworths and SBS she also served as Chancellor of the University of Wollongong so I'm delighted to invite Gillian to deliver the vote of thanks thank you Michael I'm the most recently appointed member of the board of the Lowy Institute I've been asked to give the vote of thanks my fellow directors have not heard me speak before so this may be the last time I get to speak but I'll give it my best this is our signature event and even more especially the 20th anniversary of the Lowy Institute I'm imbued with the honour of this occasion to be here after we've heard from the Prime Minister of our country and also from our beloved founder of the Lowy Institutes of Frank Lowy thank you Prime Minister for your words of reassurance that peace is Australia's primary focus in foreign policy the regional focus of our policy is also welcomed together with the support and allegiance which we are building further with our major global allies as Prime Minister you are of course very much in demand the global instability in the Middle East and in Northern Europe and at home the natural disasters and the floods in Northern Queensland add to the demand on your time we are most appreciative of you coming to give the lecture to us tonight your acceptance to speak to us tonight I think reflects the high regard in which the Lowy Institute is held and also the high regard and the presence of our founders of Frank Lowy in addition to our founder and the Prime Minister we have the support and presence of many of distinguished people in the audience tonight and supporters in major corporate entities in Australia I also in addition to thanking the Prime Minister for his words want to thank Fareed Sakaria for his perspective from New York and his reassurance that the world of order will dominate and carry us through the Lowy Institute as Michael said is a precious asset of Australia and as Frank said it's a factory of ideas under the guidance of our strong and visionary executive director Michael fully love and through our researchers our publications our visiting speakers and our scholars we have created a source of inspiration and knowledge about political and economic global events it's enhanced the debate enormously and increased our awareness of global initiatives and dynamics I'm very proud to be a member of the board and proud to be associated with everything that the Lowy Institute does I'm also pleased to be here and find so many friends in the audience and find at such an enjoyable event to be expressing my gratitude of not only the audience but myself to the Prime Minister and Fareed for speaking to us tonight thank you Gillian thank you for a great vote of thanks and definitely not the last time we will call on you ladies and gentlemen that wraps things up thank you for joining us this evening for the 2023 Lowy lecture and you know I think we've been lucky tonight I think we've been lucky we had an important and thoughtful address from the Prime Minister giving us an assured vision of his world view and the approach that Australian foreign policy is taking under his leadership we had an insight that I had never considered before and that is that as tough as a UN meeting might get as jet lagged as you might be at an APEC meeting as difficult as a G20 summit might be nothing is ever as tough as a New South Wales ALP conference so thank you PM for being here this evening on this special night I want to thank Fareed Zakaria for his remarks his second address to the Lowy lecture and dinner and for giving us something really positive to take away about the strength of democracies and the strength of the international order and thank you to Sir Frank Lowy thank you Frank for everything and ladies and gentlemen I might ask you to give a special round of applause to Sir Frank finally ladies and gentlemen let me thank by name all my colleagues have worked on this event over many months at the Institute we don't get professional event organizations to run these kinds of events we do it ourselves because it's personal and because it's important to us and the Lowy lecture is a big lift for a small organization it takes belief and it takes labor and it takes hard work so let me let me pass on my special thanks to Amy Dobbin to Andrea Pollard delighted to see Andrea here this evening Tara Peanard, Michaela Lowy, Lisa Gabriel, Josh Godding, Andrew Griffiths, Rachel Stanley, Alyssa Graham, Louise Terrence and David Valance thank you very much ladies and gentlemen for being here we look forward to seeing you at Bly Street soon and please feel free to stay and mingle and have another drink thank you and good night