Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Minister for Defence) | Hansard source

I want to thank the member for Boothby for her fine service to this parliament and for her deep commitment to veterans and to the defence community not just in her seat but in South Australia. I thank her for the decency she has demonstrated in her dealings with those individuals and many more.

It is the case that our nation and, indeed, the world faces one of the most complex and potentially catastrophic international security environments since the Second World War. We may be on the cusp of Russia going into the Ukraine and the tragedy that would follow that. The consequences, we know, would be catastrophic for the region, for Europe and, indeed, for the world. We're seeing the Chinese government amass thousands of missiles in our own region, now with 20 points of military presence in the South China Sea, and this government will do everything within its power to keep our country safe, to avoid any conflict in our region and to stare down those people that would seek to initiate conflict in our region. But you need to argue from a position of strength, and you need to have strong character to be able to do it. The problem is that, when I am asked about alternative approaches, it really makes you focus—

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