[Australia's Foreign Minister Bob] Carr to head to South East Asia

Bob Carr

March 22, 2012
DynamicExport.com.au

The recently appointed Foreign Minister Bob Carr will travel to South East Asia on his first overseas trip to highlight Australia’s relationship with nations in the region.

Carr’s first trip as Foreign Minister will take him to Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore to discuss a wide range of issues. “I look forward to discussing how we can cooperate on a range of issues, including regional security and ASEAN’s ambitious connectivity agenda, as well as the future expansion of our bilateral relationship,” Carr said.

The Senator said that Australia’s relationship with the region was important to long term interests economically and politically, for regional and global security.

“The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been central to the development of a prosperous and stable region and to the increasing stature of regional institutions, particularly the East Asia Summit (EAS),” Carr said.

His first stop will be Cambodia, the current chair of ASEAN and the EAS where he will meet Prime Minister Hun Sen and Foreign Minister Hor Namhong, who is also a Deputy Prime Minister.

“I look forward to discussing how we can cooperate on a range of issues, including regional security and ASEAN’s ambitious connectivity agenda, as well as the future expansion of our bilateral relationship,” Carr said.

His visit to Vietnam comes after the recent announcement by EFIC and the ADB to include Vietnam in their existing participation agreement. Carr will also open the new Australian Consulate-General premises in Ho Chi Minh city which will facilitate trade links between Australia and Vietnam. “Our relationship with Vietnam is pivotal for our engagement with the region, where it is an increasingly important player,” he said.