Anthony Albanese has confirmed Australia will attend the G20 meeting in Bali in November despite Russia’s controversial attendance at the summit, with the prime minister also pledging to assist Indonesia as host of the leaders meeting.
With some world leaders signalling they may not attend the event if Russia comes, Indonesia as the summit host has arranged for the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to make a virtual appearance.
On Monday, Albanese told his host, the Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, that Australia would come to Bali in November because the G20 “is critical at this time of global economic uncertainty, and it will be by working with Indonesia that we most effectively tackle the many challenges we face in navigating the post-Covid global economic recovery”.
Asked why he was prepared to come to Bali when his predecessor Scott Morrison had characterised attending as a step too far, the prime minister told reporters he was focused on supporting the Indonesian president, not on Vladimir Putin and his “abhorrent” actions.
Confirmation of Australia’s attendance at the G20 followed the first official meeting between the pair at Bogor Palace in Jakarta, which included a bike ride in the palace gardens. Albanese was afforded a ceremonial welcome and the two leaders discussed the war in Ukraine, regional cooperation and growing strategic competition in the region – meaning China’s increasingly assertive posture in the Indo-Pacific, which is the backdrop to the new Labor government’s accelerated diplomatic outreach across the region.
In an explicit reference to regional tensions, the Indonesian president told reporters strategic competition “must be well managed to avoid open conflict” and international laws needed to be “followed consistently”.
Widodo said Indonesia’s consistent position was a strong relationship with Australia would “contribute to peace and prosperity in the region”.
Indonesia has previously expressed concern about an escalating arms race in the region and has criticised Australia’s commitment to the Aukus submarine partnership. Albanese flagged Australia’s continuing commitment to that deal during Monday’s discussions.
Albanese said when it came to managing the China threat, Australia and Indonesia were two independent countries with independent foreign policies. But he said he was struck in the conversations on Monday about the similarities between the two approaches.
The Australian prime minister said since coming to government two weeks ago, he had stressed the importance of competition without catastrophe – which is a formulation adopted by the Biden administration. He said Australia’s position was influenced by its historical alliance with the United States – our most important security partner.
Albanese said a priority for the new Labor government in Canberra was deepening connections both with Jakarta and with south-east Asia, with “Asean‑led institutions … at the absolute centre of our vision for the Indo-Pacific”.
Australia’s prime minister said his government planned to deliver an additional $470m over four years in aid and development assistance in south-east Asia as well as appointing a dedicated high-level roving regional envoy.
He also flagged more defence cooperation with Indonesia.
Albanese said he saw economic partnership with Indonesia as economic opportunity for the two countries. Australia’s prime minister said revitalising trade and investment was critical, and he planned to talk to Australia’s superannuation funds about beneficial investment in the region.
Albanese has been using his government’s more ambitious climate policy as a point of entry diplomatically in the region. On Monday the prime minister emphasised bilateral partnership on climate change.
“True to my government’s ambitious climate targets, I want better access to affordable, reliable and secure clean energy right across our region, as we transition to a net zero world together,” Albanese said.
Albanese characterised Widodo’s planned capital, Nusantara as “an incredibly exciting prospect – a nation‑building project signalling where Indonesia’s headed, and I’m pleased to offer Australian technical expertise to help you plan a clean, green, hi-tech city”.
Widodo first announced the plan to move Indonesia’s capital in 2019, in an effort to relieve the huge environmental challenges facing Jakarta, and to redistribute wealth.
The Indonesian president welcomed the Albanese government’s $200m commitment to pursuing bilateral cooperation on energy and climate change, as well as new investments from Sun Cable and Fortescue Metals.
But he said he wanted Australia to expand market access for high-value added Indonesian imports, including in the automotive sector. The Indonesian president said he also wanted more opportunities for Indonesians to work in Australia.
Widodo said Indonesia would also seek opportunities to improve food security in the face of ongoing global supply disruptions created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Albanese also flagged measures to increase the capacity for people movement between the two countries. He noted there was a backlog in visa processing generally, and said specifically in relation to Indonesia, “we need to be more welcoming”.
