6m agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 10:09pm

Wong denies PM trip for no-deal was embarrassing

Penny Wong has continued on her morning media blitz, where she downplayed suggestion the Vanuatu deal was dead in the water.

“We’ll continue to speak with Vanuatu and engage with them about a way forward. We think … it’s in both countries interests to have development and further peace and,” the foreign minister told Nine.

“But obviously there’s a lot of discussion that still needs to occur.”

She acknowledged Australia is in a “permanent contest” in the Pacific and blamed the “neglect” of previous Coalition government’s engagement with the region (notably not naming China as the country Australia is in contest with).

Asked if the whole thing was a bit embarrassing for the PM, Wong laughed it off and told the host they were his words, not hers.

“I would describe this as an ongoing dialogue with Vanuatu and I would also say to you that we understand the circumstances that the Pacific faces, and we will keep working to develop strong relationships and to get to arrive at good
understandings and arrangements  with members of the Pacific family.”

23m agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 9:52pm

Vanuatu trip still had purpose despite no deal signed: Labor

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will this morning leave Vanuatu empty handed after plans to ink a $500m security and development deal with the Pacific nation fell through.

The fate of the deal, known as the Nakamal Agreement, now hangs in the balance after Vanuatu’s PM Jotham Napat revealed the “wording” in the critical infrastructure agreement caused concern for some local government MPs.

Primarily, that the wording was too strict in limiting Vanuatu’s ability to sign infrastructure deals with other countries (aka China).

Assistant Foreign Minister Matt Thistlethwaite says the government learned “a couple of days ago” Vanuatu wasn’t ready to put pen to paper.

“The Vanuatu government has indicated that they’ve got some internal processes that they need to finalise and go through and we respect that,” he told ABC Radio National Breakfast. 

The Labor frontbencher denied it was embarrassing for the PM to make the trip to Port Vila for a non-deal because the visit facilitated further talks. 

Asked what Australia’s understanding was of the concerns Napat had around the deal’s wording, Thistlethwaite declined to weigh in.

“They’ve got their internal processes and we have ours. It’s all part of our respect for their processes and their internal dialogue regarding this agreement.”

If you want a closer look at what scuppered the plans to sign the deal, our friends foreign affairs reporter Stephen Dziedzic and Vanuatu reporter Lillyrose Welwel have you covered.

36m agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 9:39pm

Israel strike will ‘imperil’ ceasefire negotiations

Assistant Foreign Minister Matt Thistlethwaite has warned Israel’s strike against Hamas leadership in Qatar will “imperil” ceasefire negotiations.

“These strikes violate Qatar’s sovereignty and they imperil a ceasefire and the release of the Israeli hostages. And, unfortunately, they risk further escalation in the conflict,” he told ABC Radio National Breakfast. 

“Qatar’s been working quite hard. Hard behind the scenes alongside the United States and Egypt to try and broker a ceasefire and a release of hostages deal.”

He says Australia wasn’t provided any specific information or details about the strike from Israel.

49m agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 9:26pm

Wong condemns Israel’s strike in Qatar

We’re just received our first Australian reaction to Israel’s overnight strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar.

If you’re just waking up now, our dedicated live blog has everything you need to know, but to give you some quick context, Hamas says its top leadership has not been not killed but five of its members are dead, and it says Israel’s actions have undermined the chance of any peace deal in Gaza.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong this morning added Australia to the list of countries that have condemned the strike, saying it “flies in the face” of any progress towards a ceasefire and the return of hostages.

“It’s a strike that violates Qatar’s sovereignty. It undermines, or potentially damages, the possibility of a ceasefire and the release of hostages and obviously it risks escalation,” she says.

“Let’s remember what Qatar has been doing. It has been working with the United States to try and deliver a ceasefire and return of hostages. They have been tireless in those negotiations. That’s the context in which this strike has occurred.

“I think it is wrong thing to do. It flies in the face of what we all want, which is ceasefire and the return of the hostages.”

1h agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 9:09pmNew ‘Partying Safely Hub’ for young Australians travellers

A new information resource for Australians travelling abroad will be launched today, a move inspired by the tragic deaths of teenagers Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones due to methanol poisoning in Laos last year.

Called the Partying Safely Hub, it will be on the Smart Traveller website and will have information for young Australians, parents and teachers about alcohol and drug safety abroad, including risks of methanol poisoning and drink spiking.

It will also include details on travel insurance and new texts to travellers at Australian airports.

Shaun Bowles, Holly’s father, told the ABC his family would support “any initiative that can open the eyes of young travellers heading overseas to the risks involved”.

“It needs to be drummed into kids at a young age … Social media, travel forums, Facebook traveller groups — that’s what kids are on these days so you need to target kids to what they’re looking at,” he said.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the deaths of Holly and Bianca were “a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers young people face when travelling abroad” and that the new hub would help people “explore the world with confidence [but] come home safely”.

1h agoTue 9 Sep 2025 at 8:49pm

👋 Good morning

Hello, and welcome to our federal politics live blog! I’m Courtney Gould and I’ll be guiding you through the morning.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in the Solomon Islands today as the Pacific Islands Forum’s leaders meeting kicks off in Honiara.

Elsewhere, well, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. So let’s just dive in and see where the day takes us.

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