Contents of the United States diplomatic cables leak (Australia)
Encyclopedia
Content from the United States diplomatic cables leak
has depicted Australia
and related subjects extensively. The leak, which began on 28 November 2010, occurred when the website of WikiLeaks
— an international new media
non-profit organisation that publishes submissions of otherwise unavailable documents from anonymous news sources
and news leak
s — started to publish classified documents of detailed correspondence — diplomatic cable
s — between the United States Department of State
and its diplomatic missions around the world. Since the initial release date, WikiLeaks is releasing further documents every day.
, then-Prime Minister of Australia
, advised Clinton to be in a position to use force against China "if everything goes wrong".
Don Farrell
, a South Australia
n right-wing factional powerbroker, said he believes that Julia Gillard
, Prime Minister of Australia since 2010, was gunning for the prime ministership a year before Rudd's personal support in the polls collapsed.
, accusing them of having "no common strategy for winning the war or winning the peace" and derided the contribution of France and Germany to the fight against the Taliban as "organising folk-dancing festivals".
A cable from October 2008 recorded Rudd telling a group of visiting U.S. congressmen that "the national security establishment in Australia was very pessimistic about the long-term prognosis for Afghanistan".
Australian special representative on Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ric Smith (a former secretary of the Australian Defence Department
) described the mission in Afghanistan and Afghan government presence as a "wobbly three-legged stool". In December 2009 Smith questioned what the Australian Federal Police
would be able to accomplish given the "train wreck" that they had to be given to work with in the Afghan National Police
.
Australian officials who briefed the U.S. embassy hinted at clashes between officials and ministers over its "apparent lack of progress".
(Australian Labor Party
) was in regular contact with and acted as a 'protected' source and confidential contact for the U.S. government, providing inside information and commentary on the workings of the government and the Labor Party to officers at the U.S. Embassy, Canberra.
, U.S. Ambassador to Australia
:
In November 2009, the U.S. embassy delivered another assessment that:
Contents of the United States diplomatic cables leak
This is a list of notable content from the United States diplomatic cables leak that shows the United States' opinion of related affairs. Beginning on 28 November 2010, WikiLeaks had been publishing classified documents of detailed correspondence—diplomatic cables—between the United...
has depicted Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and related subjects extensively. The leak, which began on 28 November 2010, occurred when the website of WikiLeaks
Wikileaks
WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
— an international new media
New media
New media is a broad term in media studies that emerged in the latter part of the 20th century. For example, new media holds out a possibility of on-demand access to content any time, anywhere, on any digital device, as well as interactive user feedback, creative participation and community...
non-profit organisation that publishes submissions of otherwise unavailable documents from anonymous news sources
Journalism sourcing
In journalism, a source is a person, publication, or other record or document that gives timely information. Outside journalism, sources are sometimes known as "news sources"...
and news leak
News leak
A news leak is a disclosure of embargoed information in advance of its official release, or the unsanctioned release of confidential information.-Types of news leaks:...
s — started to publish classified documents of detailed correspondence — diplomatic cable
Diplomatic cable
A diplomatic cable, also known as a diplomatic telegram or embassy cable, is the term given to a confidential text message exchanged between a diplomatic mission, like an embassy or a consulate, and the foreign ministry of its parent country....
s — between the United States Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
and its diplomatic missions around the world. Since the initial release date, WikiLeaks is releasing further documents every day.
Australia-China relations
During a meeting in March 2009, Kevin RuddKevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
, then-Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
, advised Clinton to be in a position to use force against China "if everything goes wrong".
Taiwan and Tibet
During that same meeting, Rudd described to Clinton that China was "paranoid" about Taiwan and Tibet, characterised Chinese leaders as "sub-rational and deeply emotional" in their reactions to Taiwan, and stated that the goal of his plan for an "Asia-Pacific Community" was envisaged to weaken China's authority in the region and curb its dominance in regional diplomatic institutions.Political controversy
Australian SenatorAustralian Senate
The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. Senators are popularly elected under a system of proportional representation. Senators are elected for a term that is usually six years; after a double dissolution, however,...
Don Farrell
Don Farrell
Donald Edward Farrell is an Australian politician and former trade union leader. He has been a Labor member of the Australian Senate since 1 July 2008, representing the state of South Australia. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water on 14 September 2010...
, a South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
n right-wing factional powerbroker, said he believes that Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
, Prime Minister of Australia since 2010, was gunning for the prime ministership a year before Rudd's personal support in the polls collapsed.
War in Afghanistan
Rudd was critical of Australia's European allies in the Afghanistan campaignWar in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
, accusing them of having "no common strategy for winning the war or winning the peace" and derided the contribution of France and Germany to the fight against the Taliban as "organising folk-dancing festivals".
A cable from October 2008 recorded Rudd telling a group of visiting U.S. congressmen that "the national security establishment in Australia was very pessimistic about the long-term prognosis for Afghanistan".
Australian special representative on Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ric Smith (a former secretary of the Australian Defence Department
Department of Defence (Australia)
The Australian Department of Defence is a Federal Government Department. It forms part of the Australian Defence Organisation along with the Australian Defence Force . The Defence mission is to defend Australia and its national interests...
) described the mission in Afghanistan and Afghan government presence as a "wobbly three-legged stool". In December 2009 Smith questioned what the Australian Federal Police
Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police is the federal police agency of the Commonwealth of Australia. Although the AFP was created by the amalgamation in 1979 of three Commonwealth law enforcement agencies, it traces its history from Commonwealth law enforcement agencies dating back to the federation of...
would be able to accomplish given the "train wreck" that they had to be given to work with in the Afghan National Police
Afghan National Police
The Afghan National Police - ANP - is the primary national police force in Afghanistan. It serves as a single law enforcement agency all across the country. The Afghan police force was first created with the establishment of the Afghan nation in the early 18th century...
.
Australian officials who briefed the U.S. embassy hinted at clashes between officials and ministers over its "apparent lack of progress".
Australia-United States relations
Australian Senator Mark ArbibMark Arbib
Mark Victor Arbib is an Australian politician. He has been a Labor member of the Australian Senate since July 2008, representing the state of New South Wales. He was the Australian Labor Party State Secretary of the New South Wales branch from 2004 to 2007...
(Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
) was in regular contact with and acted as a 'protected' source and confidential contact for the U.S. government, providing inside information and commentary on the workings of the government and the Labor Party to officers at the U.S. Embassy, Canberra.
Review of the Rudd government
A review of the first twelve months of the Rudd government in December 2008 by Robert McCallum, Jr.Robert McCallum, Jr.
Robert D. McCallum. Jr. was the United States Ambassador to Australia. He was sworn into this position on 21 July 2006, after his appointment by President George W. Bush was confirmed by the United States Senate. He arrived in Australia on 18 August and presented his credentials to the...
, U.S. Ambassador to Australia
United States Ambassador to Australia
The position of United States Ambassador to Australia has existed since 1940. U.S.-Australian relations have been close throughout the history of Australia...
:
- Comments that Rudd's diplomatic "missteps" largely arising from his propensity to make "snap announcements without consulting other countries or within the Australian government";
- Notes the government's "significant blunders" began when the then-foreign minister, Stephen SmithStephen Smith (Australian politician)Stephen Francis Smith , is the Australian Minister for Defence. He has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1993, representing the Division of Perth, Western Australia....
said in February 2008 that Australia would not support strategic dialogue between Australia, the U.S., Japan and India out of deference to China (David Pearl, a Treasury official on Smith's staff in 2004, told U.S. diplomats he was "very smart but intimidated both by the foreign policy issues themselves and the knowledge that PM Rudd is following them so closely"); and - Refers to Rudd's "control freak" tendencies and "persistent criticism from senior civil servants, journalists and parliamentarians that Rudd is a micro-manager obsessed with managing the media cycle rather than engaging in collaborative decision making".
In November 2009, the U.S. embassy delivered another assessment that:
- Rudd dominated foreign-policy-decision making, "leaving his foreign minister to perform mundane, ceremonial duties and relegating the Department of Foreign Affairs and TradeDepartment of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is a department of the government of Australia charged with advancing the interests of Australia and its citizens internationally...
to a backwater". - "Other foreign diplomats, in private conversations with us, have noted how much DFAT seemed to be out of the loop," and that "The Israeli ambassador Yuval RotemYuval RotemYuval Rotem is currently the ambassador of the State of Israel to the Commonwealth of Australia.-Biography:Yuval Rotem was born on March 21, 1959 in Tel Aviv to Rachel and Israel Frenkel. They lived in a suburb called Giv'atayim. Rotem attended his first years of school in a local school. He moved...
told us that senior DFAT officials are frank in asking him what Rudd is up to and admit they are out of the loop."