Abbott says US is 'family'

18 Jul 2012, 3:09 pm   -   Source: AAP
Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has declared Australia's relationship with the US as like 'family'. (AAP)

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has declared Australia's relationship with the US as like 'family'. (AAP)

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has spelled out his view on the US-Australia relationship in a major speech in Washington.

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has declared that Australia and the United States are "family", spelling out his approach to foreign policy in a keynote address in Washington.

Addressing the Heritage Foundation, Mr Abbott said that few Australians would regard the US as a "foreign country".

"We are more than allies, we're family," he said.

"Around the world we seek no privileges, ask no favours, crave no territory.

"Our objectives are to promote trade, prevent aggression and, where possible, to foster democracy based on the rule of law."

But the US should not take Australia's support "entirely for granted" and Australia's national interest might not always be identical with America's.

"Our values, though, invariably coincide and Australia's foreign policy should be driven as much by our values as by our interests," Mr Abbott said.

He rejected the idea that the rise of China, the "inconclusive" war in Afghanistan and "congressional gridlock" had made the US a declining global power.

America remained the world's largest economy and the world still looked to the US and like-minded countries whenever trouble loomed or disaster struck, he said.

And the more countries came to resemble the US, and its traits - such as intellectual curiosity, economic innovation and political liberalisation - the more likely they were to be forces for good in the wider world.

With many senior US political figures fearing the security impact of the rise of China, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, Mr Abbott said he did not believe the Chinese Communist Party wanted to "export its system" and that there was "constant pressure" in China to allow more internal democracy.

"A China that was freer as well as richer would be the best guarantee of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.

"The richer and more sophisticated a people become and the more access they have to information, the less likely they are to be impressed by militarism."

Mr Abbott is in the US for the American Australian Leadership Dialogue.

He has met Vice President Joe Biden and former Republican presidential candidate John McCain during his visit.

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