PM jokes about going ‘halvies’ with US on $400m Pacific Policing Initiative

The Prime Minister was caught on a hot mic on the sidelines on the Pacific Islands Forum joking with a US diplomat about a key project.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been filmed joking with a senior US diplomat to “go halvies” on the freshly unveiled $400m Pacific Policing Initiative (PPI).

The Australia-funded policing scheme was endorsed on Wednesday by Pacific leaders attending the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).

Among the initiative’s key elements are multi-country police units, four training centres across the region and a Brisbane-based co-ordination hub.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been filmed joking with a senior US diplomat to “go halvies” on a freshly unveiled $400m Pacific policing project. Picture: X/ AlboPM

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese jokes with US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell on the sidelines of the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum.

Mr Albanese was casually chatting to US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell on the sidelines of the PIF when he made the comments, giving a behind-the-scenes look at international diplomacy.

“Well, we had a cracker today getting the Pacific Policing Initiative through,” the Prime Minister said.

“It’s so important. It will make such a difference.”

Mr Campbell praised the PPI, calling it “fantastic” and “great”.

“I talked with Kevin about it,” he said, referring to Australia’s ambassador to the US, Kevin Rudd.

“So you know we were going to do something (but) he asked us not to, so we did not.

“We’ve given you the lane. So take the lane.”

“You can go us halvies on the cost if you like,” Mr Albanese quipped back with a laugh, prompting a chuckle from the US official.

“Well we had a cracker today getting the Pacific Policing Initiative through,” @AlboMP tells @kurtcampbel on sidelines of @piflm53@[e-mail]/sP9YNqhlSR

— Lydia Lewis (@LydiaLewisRNZ) August 28, 2024

New Zealand journalist Lydia Lewis recorded the video on the plenary floor and posted it on social media site X.

Mr Albanese told reporters on Thursday morning that Mr Campbell “is a mate of mine,” and the video simply showed them “having a chat”.

“The video is what it is,” he said.

But the Prime Minister went on to attack Ms Lewis, calling into question her ethics.

“It’s up to them, to whoever did that, to think about their own ethics,” he said, adding that “it was a private conversation, it was a jovial conversation”.

“People try and read something into it, you must be pretty bored, frankly.”

Mr Albanese ignored a reporter’s point that the conversation took place on the pleneary floor and accused Ms Lewis of “coming up behind” him, even though she was stood in front of him the whole time she was filming.

“If people are coming up behind, trying to trying to tape conversations that’s up to people to argue themselves that that’s ethical,” he said.

“I myself, were I a journalist, would not do that, and I know that most of you wouldn’t either.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the Pacific Islands Forum. Pacific leaders have endorsed an Australia-led regional policing initiative at the 53rd Pacific Islands Forum. Picture: X/ AlboPM

The PPI is a major strategic win for Canberra as it navigates Beijing increasing assertiveness in the region.

Pacific leaders have hailed the initiative as “Pacific-led”, saying that Pacific problems should be solved in-house in a thinly veiled shot at Beijing, which has been trying to woo Pacific nations into a similar deal.

Last year, China signed a policing pact with the Solomon Islands.

Uniformed Chinese police have also popped up in Kiribati, with both Kirabati and Chinese officials keeping it under wraps until Reuters exposed it in February.

At his press conference, Mr Albanese flatly denied Mr Campbell said the US was preparing a similar project to the PPI, but that Washington held off at the request of Mr Rudd.

“He didn’t say that, he didn’t say that. He did not say that,” Mr Albanese said.

Speaking to Sky News later, Defence Minister Richard Marles also dismissed the suggestion, but said the US was deeply engaged in the Pacific “across a whole range of areas.”

Originally published as PM jokes about going ‘halvies’ with US on $400m Pacific Policing Initiative