Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will attend a NATO security conference in Europe, where world leaders are expected to gather to again signal their support for Ukraine.
The conference will be held in Lithuania from July 11 to 12.
Defence policy expert Professor Stephan Fruhling said while Australian prime ministers had received regular invites since the Afghanistan war, this year’s invitation was significant given the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“It is a clear sign that leaders in the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic areas see … the need for Western unity in opposing Russia’s aggression, and the implications for stability and deterrence in our own region, as something that are fundamentally shared interests,” he told AAP.
A spokesperson for the prime minister said Australia shared a commitment to democracy, peace and security and would take the opportunity to reinforce the nation’s commitment to global norms.
“The prime minister’s attendance at this year’s NATO leader’s summit will be an important opportunity … to demonstrate solidarity in response to Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine and advocate for Australia’s economic, climate and trade agenda,” the spokesperson added.
Mr Albanese attended last year’s security summit in Madrid.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham welcomed the prime minister’s acceptance.
“It is unquestionably in Australia’s interest to seize important security-orientated opportunities to maintain European understanding of the strategic challenges in our region,” he said.
The prime minister announce more aid for Ukraine and aim to have Australia permanently embedded as an ongoing participant in NATO dialogue “thereby ensuring continued focus on Indo-Pacific security”, the Liberal senator said.
“Now is not the time for the Albanese government to show any fatigue in support of Ukraine,” he added.
“A comprehensive package across military, humanitarian and other assistance should be provided to make sure that we continue to defend the rules-based order where it is under direct threat by Russia.”
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said the war in Ukraine and his and Mr Albanese’s attendance at NATO would be discussed when the pair meet this weekend in Brisbane.
“The war in Ukraine is one that dominates a lot of international discussion at the moment and the various international pressures that flow from it,” Mr Hipkins said.
The NZ prime minister raised eyebrows in Wellington this week with an answer he gave in an embargoed press conference ahead of his travel to Brisbane.
After the Australian prime minister mentioned earlier in the week he was texting Mr Hipkins about the summit, the NZ prime minister was asked what was in the texts.
“The fact that we’re both going to go,” Mr Hipkins said.
– AAP
