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O 170245Z JUL 09
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO AMEMBASSY CANBERRA IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L STATE 074418 
 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/22/2019 
TAGS: OVIP ECON PREL PGOV SCUL KNNP ASIR KN KS
XF, XE 
SUBJECT: (U) Deputy Secretary Steinberg's June 19, 2009 
Conversation with Australian Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard 
 
¶1. Classified by EAP Acting Assistant Secretary Scot Marciel. 
Reasons: 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
¶2.  (U) June 19; 5:45 p.m.; Washington, DC. 
 
¶3.  (U) Participants: 
 
U.S. 
Deputy Secretary Steinberg 
EAP Acting Assistant Secretary Scot Marciel 
Pamela Park, D Staff 
William Bellis, EAP/ANP (Notetaker) 
 
AUSTRALIA 
Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard 
Ambassador Dennis Richardson 
Lisa Paul, Secretary of Dept of Education Employment and 
Workplace Relations 
Tom Bentley, Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the 
 
Deputy Prime Minister 
Michael Sadlier, First Secretary, Embassy of Australia 
 
¶4.  (C/Rel Aus) SUMMARY.  In a 20-minute meeting on June 
19, the Deputy Secretary and Deputy Prime Minster Julia 
Gillard reaffirmed the valued and close relations between 
the United States and Australia while discussing a 
variety topics including the Middle East, Iran, Uighurs, 
North Korea, the global economic crisis, and the 
bilateral Work and Holiday Pilot Program.  The Deputy 
Secretary expressed how much we value our unique 
relationship with Australia, and noted that we do not 
take it for granted.  The Deputy Secretary's two most 
important requests for Government of Australia (GOA) 
support were its re-consideration of taking some Uighur 
detainees from Guantanamo and assistance in developing a 
coordinated response from the international community to 
enforce UNSCR 1874 regarding North Korean illicit cargo 
shipments.  Gillard said Australia would seriously look 
again at the former and fully supported the United States 
on the latter issue.  END SUMMARY. 
 
------------------------- 
MIDDLE EAST STATE OF PLAY 
------------------------- 
 
¶5. (C/Rel Aus) Gillard said that her stop in Washington, 
on the way to Israel, was primarily to introduce herself 
and reinforce already-strong United States - Australian 
relations.  In particular she said she was interested in 
getting the United States' perspective following the 
President's Cairo speech, and on the situation in Iran 
and the Asia-Pacific region.  Deputy Secretary Steinberg 
expressed how much we valued the unique relationship we 
have with Australia.  He also mentioned the close 
personal relations between the President and Prime 
Minister Rudd.  However, he added that we do not take our 
close relations with Australia for granted.  The Deputy 
Secretary said he was glad Gillard would be meeting with 
the Israeli leaders.  He said that there was a long- 
standing opportunity to make progress with enormous pay- 
offs, and it was a high priority for the President. 
Ambassador George Mitchell would return to the region 
with ideas on how to move forward, and these would 
include assurances to the Israelis on security.  However, 
the US believed that a settlement freeze was essential to 
progress and that time was not on the side of an 
agreement. 
 
---- 
IRAN 
---- 
 
¶6. (C/Rel Aus) The Deputy Secretary observed that the 
post-election situation made it more complicated for the 
Iranians to engage in a dialogue, especially on the 
nuclear issue, and that options for the U.S. and Israel 
were very limited.  He said that based on his experiences 
in the 1979 hostage negotiations during the Carter 
Administration, the internal political dynamics of Iran 
were difficult to understand. 
 
----------- 
NORTH KOREA 
----------- 
 
¶7. (C/Rel Aus) The Deputy Secretary said it was necessary 
to make clear to the DPRK that things must change and 
that the international community will enforce UNSCR 1874. 
The United States' focus, he emphasized, was to avoid 
confrontation, and encourage all states to follow the 
procedures laid out under UNSCR 1874 regarding the 
inspection of suspect North Korean cargo shipments.  He 
added that he was confident Japan and South Korea would 
do so, but was less sure about China and Russia and urged 
Australia to weigh-in with its Asian partners such as 
ASEAN.  Gillard, citing Prime Minister Rudd's statements 
on the issue, said the Australia was with the United 
States on North Korea.  It was a key policy focus for the 
government, she added. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
ASIA PACIFIC COOPERATION AND STUDENT EXCHANGES 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶8. (C/Rel Aus) Gillard made short pitches on two issues. 
Touching on Prime Minister Rudd's Asia-Pacific 
Cooperation (APC) initiative, she acknowledged that 
Australia needed to continue to work on it in the form of 
ongoing discussions with its regional partners.  Gillard 
strongly advocated for a continuation of the U.S.- 
Australia Work and Holiday Pilot Program, saying that it 
was a great people-to-people initiative.  The Deputy 
Secretary responded that he was familiar with these types 
of programs in general and recognized their critical 
importance. 
 
---------------- 
UIGHER DETAINEES 
---------------- 
 
¶9. (C/Rel Aus) The Deputy Secretary also raised the issue 
of the Uigher detainees in Guantanamo, explaining how 
important it was to the United States and how much we 
appreciated Australian's willingness to reconsider 
accepting some.  He alluded to the domestic challenges 
the Administration faces regarding the Congress in 
dealing with the detainees.  Gillard said she understood 
how domestic politics can complicate these kinds of 
issues and that Australia would take another look and get 
back to us. 
 
---------------------- 
GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS 
---------------------- 
 
¶10. (C/Rel Aus) The meeting concluded with Gillard asking 
when the Deputy Secretary might be traveling to the 
region again.  He joked that he would love to try and get 
to Australia, "but we don't have enough problems with 
you."  Gillard added that Prime Minister Rudd looked 
forward to seeing the President again at the upcoming G- 
20 meeting in Pittsburgh.  She said that Australia was 
doing well in comparison to the rest of the world with a 
positive .04% annual growth rate in the first quarter and 
only 5.7% unemployment.  "We'd take it", the Deputy 
Secretary replied.  He added that the irony was that 
people are only now coming to understand the situation 
and we are just now seeing signs of the relief measures 
slowly beginning to work. We have to keep at it, he 
concluded. 
 
 
CLINTON