Original Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade link: M30
5 April 1995
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Gareth Evans leaves Australia tomorrow for official visits to Norway, Sweden, Finland, The Netherlands and the United States.
Senator Evans said the European leg of the trip, closely following on from the Prime Minister's visit to Germany, and focusing on multilateral and bilateral issues and United Nations reform, highlights the importance of Europe to Australia.
Senator Evans will visit Norway from 7 - 8 April, Sweden from 8 - 11 April, Finland on 12 April and The Netherlands on 13 April.
The visits will provide an opportunity to discuss with his counterparts and other senior ministers a range of multilateral issues on which Australia, the Nordic countries and The Netherlands take a similar approach. United Nations reform issues will be a major focus, as will be Australia's candidacy for a seat on the UN Security Council for 1997-98.
The accession of Finland and Sweden to the European Union will also be discussed, as will a number of bilateral issues. In Stockholm, Senator Evans will address a two day workshop on "The Use of Force in UN Peace Operations", which is being co-hosted by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
In The Netherlands, Senator Evans will also open an exhibition on Aboriginal culture and art at the Children's Museum in Amsterdam.
In New York (17 - 18 April), Senator Evans will lead the Australian delegation to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review and Extension Conference (NPTREC). Senator Evans said the extension of the NPT is the most important international security issue facing the international community this year. A major goal for Australia is to secure the indefinite extension of the NPT. The NPT is vital to global and regional security. Current membership has reached a record 175 countries, boosted by a recent rush of new accessions, reflecting the Treaty's success in establishing a norm against nuclear weapons proliferation.
Senator Evans said Australia was at this stage reasonably confident that the majority of states parties would support the Treaty's indefinite extension, but that strong arguments would need to be made "down to the wire" to ensure that result.
Senator Evans said that Australia would also like to see the conference achieve a strong endorsement of new measures to strengthen the nuclear safeguards system, encouragement for the historic process of nuclear reductions between the US and Russia, and a strong reaffirmation of the ultimate goal of a world free of nuclear weapons.
In New York, Senator Evans will also attend the fourth meeting of the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict, chaired by former US Secretary of State, Cyrus Vance, and including among its members, as well as Senator Evans, Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Bruntland, Sir Shridath Ramphal and Lord Owen.
From 19 - 20 April, Senator Evans and the Minister for Defence, Senator Robert Ray, will visit Washington to attend the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Talks (AUSMIN). The United States will be represented by the Secretary of State, Warren Christopher, and the Secretary of Defense, William Perry.
The talks will provide an opportunity for discussion on a number of key foreign policy, defence, security and economic issues. The AUSMIN talks are the key forum for high-level contact between the Australian and United States Governments. Last year's AUSMIN talks were held in Canberra from 8 - 9 March 1994.
Senator Evans will return to Australia on 22 April.
CANBERRA