Radio interview – 6PR

SIMON BEAUMONT, HOST: Today is the start of the commemoration of the Korean War back in 1950. Matt Keogh is the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs and joins us now. G'day, Matt.

MINISTER FOR VETERANS’ AFFAIRS AND DEFENCE PERSONNEL, MATT KEOGH: G'day, Simon. Great to be with you.

BEAUMONT: You're in Canberra today. And West Australians were involved in this theatre of war?

KEOGH: Absolutely, Western Australians were involved. We had over 1,600 Western Australians, in fact, served in the Korean conflict as part of the 18,000 Australians that participated. Australia was the second country to have all three forces, Navy, Army, Air Force, involved in supporting the South Koreans when they were invaded by North Korea. And it's a very important day today with the 75th anniversary of the commencement of that conflict, recognising the service of those 18,000 and particularly remembering the 340 Australians that were killed, with still 43 missing in action. Indeed, six of those missing in action were from WA.

BEAUMONT: Yes. And, Matt, I'm aware of the memorial in Kings Park, which I think was only opened a couple of years ago recently. Yeah, we'll speak to Peter Heeney about that in just a moment. But what's your understanding of what the next month will hold in terms of remembering?

KEOGH: Well, as with all of our commemorative activity, it's important, you know, when we say the words at the end of the Ode, ‘Lest We Forget’, that that is not hollow, that Australians remember all of those that have worn our uniform on our behalf and served in conflict and through a range of operations, including peacekeeping. And if we think about the Korean War, which sometimes gets overlooked in the shadow of the Second World War and before the Vietnam War, that was a conflict that Australia was a key participant in, along with 22 countries supporting South Korea, but one we continue to be involved in today. Whilst it's just over 70 years ago that the armistice was signed and the guns fell silent in the Korean War, we still have Australians up in the DMZ, up in the demilitarised zone, as part of the UN Command there. There's no peace treaty yet in the Korean conflict. So, it's important to remember not just those that participated, the 18,000 in the war itself and those that died in it, but also those that continue to be engaged in monitoring the peace.

BEAUMONT: And I'll ask Peter Heeney about this in just a moment, because he's the State Secretary here. Matt, is there national remembrances today and through the month, and will that go into the States, into the jurisdictions?

KEOGH: So, yes, we've had the National Service this morning here in Canberra, and I know that across all states they're having their own commemorations. Of course, not every Korean veteran can make it to Canberra. We had great representation here. In fact, I can tell you one of the people who participated in the commemorative ceremony here in Canberra was a Western Australian from Esperance who decided he wanted to drive himself to Canberra to participate. We offered to fly him over, but he drove, which shows you the commitment of these guys and we're talking about guys that have an average age of 93 and so there's not that many of them left and it's important that we as a nation continue to remember their service and their sacrifice. Many came back injured not just with physical injury, but mental scars as well supported by families and we remember all of those that were involved.

BEAUMONT: Matt, as a senior member of the Albanese Government I'll ask you this if I may. Are we at a point where we are now talking about the US airstrikes on Tehran? Does the Albanese Government and your Government support those strikes?

KEOGH: Well, we've said certainly that we supported taking out that nuclear capability of Iran. That was critically important. We've acknowledged that. Many of my colleagues have been acknowledging that over the last few days. But what's important also now is that the ceasefire between Iran and Israel sticks and we're starting to see that now which is really important to de-escalate those tensions in the region. Of course, in the meantime we've been supporting Australians who have been needing to get out of that region as well and we've already had one military-assisted transport out of Australians from the area and I think we're starting to see now a return to commercial options for people to be able to travel as well, which is incredibly important. But making sure that that threat of Iran holding a nuclear weapon, which globally would not be acceptable, making sure that that didn't occur was very important.

BEAUMONT: Matt, how does the mechanics of it work? Not strictly your remit, being the Veterans' Affairs Minister, but being a senior member of the, of the Government. How are briefings passed to say, for example Mr. Albanese and Ms. Wong?

KEOGH: Well, as you would imagine, I don't really go into how we operationalise the conduct of our Defence activities and how we engage diplomatically, especially amongst our Five Eyes partners, which includes the United States, which is an incredibly important ally and relationship that we hold with them and others when it comes to intelligence and operations. I'm not going to go into the detail of that but obviously that relationship that we hold with the United States is incredibly important, particularly in our region where we are concentrating on making sure that we maintain the status quo and stability across our region in what are increasingly uncertain global times. Across, obviously, in the Middle East right now, but also areas like Ukraine and through the Indo-Pacific as well. We're working with all partners to make sure that we maintain a stable region.

BEAUMONT: We are chatting to you first and foremost with regards to remembering the Korean War starting today Matt, and we appreciate your time. And we will speak to Peter Heeney from Western Australia, who's the Secretary of the movement here in WA. Thanks for your time, Minister.

KEOGH: Thanks, Beauie.

Open Arms – Veterans & Families Counselling provides 24/7 free confidential crisis support for current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families on 1800 011 046 or the Open Arms website. Safe Zone Support provides anonymous counselling on 1800 142 072. Defence All-Hours Support Line provides support for ADF personnel on 1800 628 036 or the Defence Health Portal. Defence Member and Family Helpline provides support for Defence families on 1800 624 608