The raw prawn: Marty Natalegawa takes swipe at Tony Abbott over prawn spying claim

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

Dr Natalegawa said he had “come across a statement” by the Australian government on the matter “and the reference that Australia collects intelligence to save Australian lives, to save the lives of other people and to promote Australian values". “Those are well understood … but … I find it a bit mind boggling, a little bit difficult, how I can connect or reconcile discussions about shrimps and how they impact on Australian security,” Dr Natalegawa said.
His comment was a clear reference to Prime Minister Tony Abbott's statement on ABC Radio a few hours earlier, when he said: “We don't collect intelligence for commercial purposes – we collect intelligence to save Australian lives, to save the lives of other people, to promote Australian values, to promote the universal values of humanity and to help our friends and neighbours, including Indonesia."
Dr Natalegawa said the talks which had been the subject of spying had involved “a very technical, bilateral, US-Indonesia issue”. “To suggest as if the future of shrimp exports by Indonesia to the United States has an impact on Australian security is a little bit much and begs some kind of serious question about what it's all about.” He added, as Mr Kerry looked on, that neighbours such as Australia and Indonesia should “be looking out for each other, not turning against one an other; we should be listening to each other, not listening in”.
Mr Kerry, who has spent two days in Indonesia as part of a tour of Asia, said he understood “completely” and respected Dr Natalegawa's comments, adding the spying revelations of Edward Snowden and their effect on international relations were “a challenge for all of us”. “We take this issue very seriously, which is why President Obama laid out a series of concrete and substantial reforms,” Mr Kerry said. “The United States doesn't collect intelligence for the competitive advantage of US companies, or US commercial sectors.” New reforms enacted since the Snowden revelations should ensure “transparency and accountability”.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/the-raw-prawn-marty-natalegawa-takes-swipe-at-tony-abbott-over-prawn-spying-claim-20140217-32wgq.html

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No comment. I await the release on the Trans-Pacific Treaty, the one forcing all of Asia to accept unlimited, non-ending intellectual property rights. It will be a doozy.