Referral of the inquiry
1.1
On 17 March 2021, the Senate referred the following matter to the Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade References Committee for inquiry and report by 5 August 2021:
(a)
the suitability of existing regional architecture and country-groupings to address key human security issues in the Indo-Pacific, including health security, the impacts of climate change, human rights and labour rights;
(b)
the interactions between and complementarity of regional security groupings - including the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum and the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative - and other regional cooperation mechanisms such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the East Asia Summit;
(c)
using existing regional architecture to deepen Australia’s defence engagement and strategic cooperation across the Indo-Pacific;
(d)
how regional security groupings deliver Australia’s objectives of promoting a stable, resilient and inclusive Indo-Pacific, including:
(i)
progress on thematic focus areas already identified (maritime security, cyber and critical technology, critical minerals, counter-terrorism, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief) and potential for additional thematic focus areas,
(ii)
the feasibility of institutionalising certain regional security groupings and the potential for expansion, and
(iii)
deepening cooperation between regional security partners on economic and development issues in the Indo-Pacific; and
1.2
On 21 June 2021, the reporting date was extended to 2 September 2021. Subsequently, the reporting date was extended again on 23 August to
30 September 2021. On 30 September 2021 the committee presented a progress report seeking a further extension until 7 October 2021.
Conduct of the inquiry
1.3
Details of the inquiry were placed on the committee website at: http://aph.gov.au/senate_fadt. The committee also contacted a number of relevant individuals and organisations to notify them of the inquiry and invite submissions by 7 May 2021. The committee continued to receive submissions after the closing date. Public submissions received are listed at Appendix 1.
1.4
The committee held two public hearings in Canberra on 19 and 24 August 2021. A list of witnesses who gave evidence at the public hearings is available at Appendix 2. Submissions and the Hansard transcripts of evidence may be accessed through the committee website.
1.5
The committee thanks the individuals and organisations who provided submissions and participated in the committee's hearings.
Structure of this report
1.6
This report consists of five chapters:
Chapter 1 contains information on the referral and conduct of the inquiry;
Chapter 2 outlines the existing regional architecture and country-groupings in the Indo-Pacific and Australia’s engagement with them;
Chapter 3 explores the evidence submitted to the inquiry and the various perspectives provided to the committee on opportunities for advancing Australia’s strategic interest through existing regional architecture. It covers the importance of and challenges for continued engagement in the region as well as the capability and complementarity of existing regional groupings, with a particular focus on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue;
Chapter 4 covers a range of other matters of regional strategic importance that were raised in submissions and evidence, including such issues as human and labour rights, health security, environment and climate change, critical minerals, science and technology, and Northern Territory’s role in the region; and
Chapter 5 details the committee's conclusions and recommendations.