Anthony Albanese’s first trip to Europe was dominated by the backdrop of the war in Ukraine, but the chance to express wasn’t the only opportunity for the prime minister.
During the trip, , stopped in Paris to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron and also visited Ukraine.
The overseas tour gave Mr Albanese the chance to develop closer ties with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and stage his first meetings with key world leaders.
Dr William Stoltz of the ANU’s National Security College, said the trip had been a "whirlwind" visit, helping Mr Albanese strengthen his credentials on the world stage.
"He’s really taken advantage of the opportunity of attending multiple different forums to meet with a whole range of world leaders,” he told SBS News.
“I suppose it’s a collective effort by the Albanese government to really signal to the international community that there’s been a reset in Australia’s foreign policy.”
Establishing closer ties with NATO
After his trip, Mr Albanese described the summit as “very successful” saying that it was “important for Australia” to be represented there.
But it’s unusual for an Australian leader to attend the annual NATO leaders summit, with the country normally represented by foreign or defence ministers.
Australia is not a member of NATO, but has permanent observer status with the group, allowing the country to have transparency on security cooperation.
The prime minister had been invited as part of an Asia-Pacific delegation, alongside the leaders of New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.
A NATO communique released following the meeting described Russia as the "most significant and direct threat to the allies' security".
But the document also cited China as a challenge for the first time, setting the stage for the 30-member body's response to Beijing as a strategic competitor.
Natasha Kassam, director of the foreign policy program at the Lowy Institute, said Mr Albanese’s appearance had offered the prime minister the chance to also advocate for NATO to consider issues of concern faced by Australia in the Indo-Pacific region.
“While it [NATO] is understandably occupied by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a special effort is being made to consider threats in the Asia-Pacific,” she told SBS News.
“Particularly to condemn the risks posed by China - that’s not something we’ve seen before and clearly shows some of the concerns and threats to the global order."
Resetting relations with the French after submarine deal scuttled
During his stopover in Paris, Mr Albanese met with Mr Macron to smooth over relations with the European ally.
The relationship had soured because of his predecessor Scott Morrison’s decision to scuttle a $90 billion submarine contract with the French government.
Mr Macron had accused Mr Morrison of lying to him over the deal, after the former prime minister chose to back a deal for Australia to acquire nuclear submarine technology from the US and UK, which received bipartisan support.
Following their talks, Mr Macron and Mr Albanese agreed to a so-called new agenda for co-operation based on three pillars: defence and security; resilience and climate action; and education and culture.
Dr Stoltz said the meeting was a welcome “first step”, but said beyond its “symbolic” significance its outcomes shouldn’t be overstated.
“The reality is there’s been a great deal of damage to the underlying trust in that relationship and that’s going to take many years to be restored.”
Mr Albanese's visit to Europe also included talks with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid.
PM pledges to stand with Ukraine ‘as long as it takes’
Mr Albanese also made a visit to Ukraine, where he promised Australia would stand with the war-ravaged country for “as long as it takes” to defeat Russia.
He promised another $100 million in military aid, taking Australia’s commitment as the largest non-NATO contributor to the war effort to $388 million.
During his visit, Mr Albanese saw the devastation of civilian homes heavily damaged by Russian forces.
His visit to meet with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was the first ever by an Australian leader to the country.
Following his visit, Mr Albanese said he believed the trip was “important” to show “solidarity” with the people of Ukraine but also because of the impact of the conflict on Australians.
“[It’s] having an impact on Australians with rising energy prices, rising inflation, impact on supply chains, including on foods,” he said.
Using climate change to win international support
During his European trip, Mr Albanese also said he intended for free trade negotiations with Europe to resume in the coming months, suggesting his government was better placed than his predecessors to secure the deal.
“It was clear that there were two impediments there. One was Australia’s relationship with France and the breakdown that had occurred in recent times given France’s leadership role in Europe,” he said while in Paris.
“The second was Australia’s position on climate change.”
The Albanese government has adopted a more ambitious emissions reduction target of 43 per cent by 2030 on 2005 levels compared to the previous government’s 26 to 28 per cent target.
Ms Kassam said Australia’s previous stance and record on climate change had been a “point of contention with many of our allies”.
“The message that Mr Albanese and the government are bringing is that taking the climate threat seriously is at the centre of their agenda,” she said.
No guarantee of reset of China relationship
Mr Albanese also consistently raised his concerns during his trip about Russia and China’s so-called “no limits” relationship announced in February this year.
He said there had been a failure of China to condemn Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, calling on them to “look at what is happening”.
Dr Stoltz said the Albanese government appeared to be being “very cautious” and “clear-eyed” about the opportunity to reset Australia’s relationship with Beijing.
This is despite overtures from Chinese diplomats in Australia about the prospect for relations to improve under a new government.
