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| Stephen Smith Minister for Defence |
Minister for Defence, Stephen Smith, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Bob Carr, and Minister for Home Affairs, Jason Clare, today welcomed the release of a new report entitled Partnering for peace: Australia’s peacekeeping and peacebuilding experiences in the Autonomous Regional of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea, and in Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste.
This year marks 65 years of continuous Australian contribution to international peacekeeping.
“This report reflects on Australian experiences in our region and identifies innovations and lessons for missions elsewhere,” said Mr Smith.
Senator Carr said the report was a practical contribution to national, regional and global dialogues on peace operations.
“The report emphasises that working in partnership with neighbouring countries is critical for supporting peace, development and security efforts,” Senator Carr said.
Mr Clare said Partnering for Peace shows the importance of coordination and integration across Australia’s strong police, military, diplomatic, development and civilian capacities.
The report was produced by the Australian Civil-Military Centre with support from the Australian Federal Police, Department of Defence, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and AusAID.
Parliamentary Secretary for Defence Dr Mike Kelly represented Australia at the report launch in New York on June 5, 2012.
Other guests of honour at the launch included former President of Timor-Leste HE Dr José Ramos-Horta, Mr Hervé Ladsous, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, and senior representatives from Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste.
A copy of the report can be found HERE