Australia–Philippines relations
Encyclopedia
Australia–Philippines relations are foreign relations between Australia
and Philippines
. Australia has an embassy in Manila
. Philippines has an embassy in Canberra
and a consulate general in Sydney
.
In October 2008, Australia's trade minister, Simon Crean
, said. the past decade has been one of lost opportunities in the country's relations with the Philippines. He stated while two way trade had grown by 17 per cent over the past decade it had expanded 130 per cent with the regional bloc Association of South East Asian Nations.
Mr Crean said that bilateral trade in 2007 totalled $US2.5 billion dollars but Australian trade with south-east Asia as a whole reached $71 billion. He further stated that Australia and the Philippines worked closely together in helping to conclude the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement "which has the potential to deliver significant commercial gains to both countries and more broadly throughout the region.
In 2005, Australian Defence Minister Robert Hill said Australia had indicated to the Philippines Government that it would like to help build its counter-terrorism capability. Hill said that Australia would consider supplying long range patrol vehicles and small boats to the Philippines armed forces to fight terrorists and that the "Philippines government was greatly concerned about terrorists moving north up the archipelago and into Mindanao
, receiving sanctuary and perhaps establishing training camps... But the Philippines military was short on both skills and equipment needed to counter that peril."
The Australian Defense Force provides training to 60 Filipino soldiers in Australia every year.
, setting terms under which a foreign military operates in a host country, would create the legal framework for a regular, though small-scale, Australian military presence. In 2005, the Defence Minister Robert Hill said that Australia was limited in aiding the Philippines with on the ground troops saying, "At the moment we are restrained by the Philippine constitution. We can't go much further than we are at the moment, without a status of forces agreement
. We're in the process of negotiating that. We'll be the second country after the United States to have such an agreement with the Philippines, and that will then allow us to, for example, conduct higher end training, or joint exercises with the Philippine armed forces."
During President Gloria Arroyo's visit to Australia from 30–31 May 2007, a bilateral Status of Visiting Forces Agreement
was signed by Australia and the Philippines. , the Australian government considers the agreement to be "awaiting ratification by the Philippine Senate."
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. Australia has an embassy in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
. Philippines has an embassy in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
and a consulate general in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
.
Migration
Significant numbers of Filipinos immigrated to Australia between the 1960s and the 1990s and Filipinos remain one of the fastest growing immigrant communities in Australia. At the 2006 Census, 160,000 Australians claimed Filipino ancestry, up from 129,000 in 2001.Trade
In 2000, the two countries had a trade dispute over the importation of Philippines bananas. In response, the Philippines Government banned the import of Australian beef for 6 months.In October 2008, Australia's trade minister, Simon Crean
Simon Crean
Simon Findlay Crean is an Australian politician, and the current Minister for the Arts and Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government in the Australian Federal Government. He was leader of the Australian Labor Party and Leader of the Opposition at the Federal level,...
, said. the past decade has been one of lost opportunities in the country's relations with the Philippines. He stated while two way trade had grown by 17 per cent over the past decade it had expanded 130 per cent with the regional bloc Association of South East Asian Nations.
Mr Crean said that bilateral trade in 2007 totalled $US2.5 billion dollars but Australian trade with south-east Asia as a whole reached $71 billion. He further stated that Australia and the Philippines worked closely together in helping to conclude the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement "which has the potential to deliver significant commercial gains to both countries and more broadly throughout the region.
Defence and Security
In 2002, citing "credible and specific information" regarding a terrorist attack following the Bali bombings, the Australian Government decided to move its embassy in Manila.In 2005, Australian Defence Minister Robert Hill said Australia had indicated to the Philippines Government that it would like to help build its counter-terrorism capability. Hill said that Australia would consider supplying long range patrol vehicles and small boats to the Philippines armed forces to fight terrorists and that the "Philippines government was greatly concerned about terrorists moving north up the archipelago and into Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
, receiving sanctuary and perhaps establishing training camps... But the Philippines military was short on both skills and equipment needed to counter that peril."
The Australian Defense Force provides training to 60 Filipino soldiers in Australia every year.
Status of forces agreement
A status of forces agreementStatus of Forces Agreement
A status of forces agreement is an agreement between a host country and a foreign nation stationing forces in that country. SOFAs are often included, along with other types of military agreements, as part of a comprehensive security arrangement...
, setting terms under which a foreign military operates in a host country, would create the legal framework for a regular, though small-scale, Australian military presence. In 2005, the Defence Minister Robert Hill said that Australia was limited in aiding the Philippines with on the ground troops saying, "At the moment we are restrained by the Philippine constitution. We can't go much further than we are at the moment, without a status of forces agreement
Status of Forces Agreement
A status of forces agreement is an agreement between a host country and a foreign nation stationing forces in that country. SOFAs are often included, along with other types of military agreements, as part of a comprehensive security arrangement...
. We're in the process of negotiating that. We'll be the second country after the United States to have such an agreement with the Philippines, and that will then allow us to, for example, conduct higher end training, or joint exercises with the Philippine armed forces."
During President Gloria Arroyo's visit to Australia from 30–31 May 2007, a bilateral Status of Visiting Forces Agreement
RP-Australia SOVFA
The RP-Australia Status of Visiting Forces Agreement is a bilateral agreement between the governments of the Republic of the Philippines and the Commonwealth of Australia concerning the status of visiting forces from each state while in the territory of the other state. The agreement was signed...
was signed by Australia and the Philippines. , the Australian government considers the agreement to be "awaiting ratification by the Philippine Senate."
See also
- Filipino Australian
- Foreign relations of AustraliaForeign relations of AustraliaThe foreign relations of Australia have spanned from the country's time as Dominion and later Realm of the Commonwealth to become steadfastly allied with New Zealand through long-standing ANZAC ties dating back to the early 1900s, and the United States throughout the Cold War, to its engagement...
- Foreign relations of Philippines