Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr has announced plans for Australia to help expand Sri Lanka’s spy network, as part of efforts to stem the flow of asylum seekers to the country.
Carr announced that Australia would be providing extra surveillance equipment to Sri Lanka as well as hosting training programs on maritime surveillance for the Sri Lankan Navy.
Speaking in Colombo he said,
‘‘We’re setting a clear agenda for intelligence sharing, naval co-operation and helping rebuild Sri Lanka - all designed to reduce people smuggling.”’
Carr also announced a $700,000 advertising campaign planned in Sri Lankan towns and villages identified by authorities as vulnerable to smuggling, aiming to discourage those from making the perilous journey to Australia.
He further went on to say,
"We've got an interest in a stable Sri Lanka and when it comes to the whole problem of human trafficking, people smuggling, irregular immigration."
"Seeing that you help a stable society with good prospects of economic growth is the smartest thing to do.”
"That's why I say aid like this is a good thing to do, it's the right thing to do for a good global citizen like Australia, but it's also in Australia's interests."
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