New Coalition foreign affairs spokesman David Coleman puts UN on notice
The Coalition’s new foreign affairs spokesman David Coleman has signalled a Dutton government would push for reforms of the UN amid criticisms of the body’s stance on Israel.
The Coalition’s new foreign affairs spokesman, David Coleman, has declared the United Nations has “immense room for improvement”, signalling a Dutton government would push for reforms to the international body he claimed had failed to deliver outcomes in the Middle East conflict.
In an interview with The Australian, Mr Coleman threw his support behind Australia’s ambassador to the United States, Kevin Rudd, but fell short of committing to keeping the former prime minister in the role if the Coalition won the election.
He also backed the Morrison government’s handling of Australia’s relationship with China, despite Beijing’s freeze on dialogue and introduction of trade bans on key export industries in retaliation to the Coalition’s call for an inquiry into the origins of the Covid-19 virus.
The former immigration minister – who was unveiled at the weekend as the surprise replacement for retiring senator Simon Birmingham in the foreign affairs portfolio – said a Coalition government would not resile from calling out Chinese coercion in the region and would push for Beijing to stop its destabilising actions in the South China Sea and its “no- limits friendship with Russia”.
As the Trump administration flagged it would try and work with allies to reform the UN amid claims it was anti-Israel and too pro-China, Mr Coleman said the multilateral body was often “far from effective”.
“The UN has immense room for improvement,” Mr Coleman said.
“It is an organisation with important goals and an organisation, when it works effectively, it can play a constructive role.
“But plainly, when you look at UN resolutions on issues such as the Middle East, it is not always effective and is often far from effective.
“So we need to engage constructively with the UN. It is in our interests that Australia is well represented at the UN, that we are forthright in working with other nations expressing our concerns, co-operating when we can. But clearly there is room for improvement.”
When asked if a Coalition government would work with other nations to push for reforms to how the UN operated, Mr Coleman said: “it would be entirely appropriate to ensure that the UN is working as effectively as it can”.
Mr Coleman delivered a scathing attack on the performance of Foreign Minister Penny Wong, ahead of her and Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus representing Australia in Poland at the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp.
In a sign the Coalition will target Senator Wong during the election campaign, Mr Coleman accused her of politicising Australia’s foreign policy “in a way that is completely inappropriate”.
He said Senator Wong’s backing of UN motions opposed by Israel last year saw Labor “move away from decades-long bipartisan positions that have been shared by successive governments”.
“The role of foreign minister is not about appeasing the inner-city views of Newtown or Surry Hills or Brunswick or Fitzroy,” Mr Coleman said.
“It is about doing what is right in the country and acting in our nation’s interests in a way which is consistent with our national values.”
The Banks MP said Labor’s position on UN motions in 2024 – which included support for Palestinian membership of the global body – rewarded Hamas terrorists.
While Senator Wong used a speech at the UN last year to push for a “clear timeline” on the recognition of Palestinian statehood, Mr Coleman said the Coalition supported a two-state solution but only if it was a negotiated outcome that involved and was supported by Israel.
He said recognition of Palestine should not be something that was “imposed” on the Jewish state.
“A two-state solution has to be one that comes about through negotiation,” Mr Coleman said.
“It needs security guarantees for both parties, it needs clear pathways to resolve the fundamentally difficult issues, like agreed borders and rights of return.
“Labor has supported motions which do not require negotiation and we are fundamentally opposed to that.”
In Poland on Monday (AEDT), Senator Wong and Mr Dreyfus said the issue of anti-Semitism had been politicised by the Coalition.
“It’s been grotesque … to see the rise in anti-Semitism since October the 7th, but it has been equally grotesque to see attempts being made to politicise either commemoration of the Holocaust or combating anti-Semitism,” Mr Dreyfus said.
Despite the Albanese government restoring ministerial dialogue and trade relations with China, Mr Coleman gave Labor little credit and was critical of the Prime Minister for not raising the sonar attacks against Australian personnel in a face-to-face meeting with President Xi Jinping in November 2023.
“It’s obviously in our interest to have a stable relationship with China and positive engagement in areas where we can collaborate effectively, such as trade and policing,” he said.
“We welcome the change in China’s approach, which has seen in the dialogue resume and trade sanctions lifted, but we also need to ensure we always stand up strongly in Australia’s interest.
“That’s why we were concerned when the Prime Minister did not stand up for Australian soldiers after the dangerous sonar attacks by the by the People’s Liberation Army.”
Mr Coleman did not concede the relationship could have been better managed by Scott Morrison and former foreign minister Marise Payne.
“I think at the time, there was great concern about the conduct of China across a range of different areas, and it was appropriate for the Australian government to speak with a clear and firm voice about those issues,” he said.
Mr Coleman said the Coalition wanted Mr Rudd to succeed but he would not guarantee he would remain in the role with a change of government.
“We want Mr Rudd to be successful, and we are supportive of him in his role,” he said.
“It is in Australia’s interest for Mr. Rudd to be successful, and that’s what we want to happen.”
He said Coalition has already proven it could have a successful relationship with Donald Trump.
“Tariffs weren’t imposed on Australia,” he said.
“I think it’s important that we emphasise to the United States that we are a nation who pulls its weight.”
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