Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) | Hansard source

by leave—I know all senators and all Australians are thinking of the families of Captain Danniel Lyon, Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Warrant Officer Class 2 Joseph Laycock and Corporal Alexander Naggs. As the Deputy Prime Minister said only a short time ago, it is now clear that any hope of finding these men alive is lost.

These four men made the brave and selfless choice to serve our country, to dedicate their lives to keeping us safe. Our first thoughts today are with the people who loved them and the people they loved because, of course, these men are soldiers, but they are sons, fathers, husbands and partners, brothers and friends. Our thoughts are also with all those who served alongside these four men, the members of the 6th Aviation Regiment based at Holsworthy in Sydney. We thank all who serve our nation's defences, many of whom have been involved in the search and recovery effort.

I acknowledge the support that the United States and Canada have provided to the efforts of the Australian Army, Navy and Air Force; and the support of civilian authorities led by the Queensland Police Service and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority. We offer them all our strength and all our thanks while their work goes on.

This is a very difficult time for many serving members, their families and veterans, and the government encourages anyone who feels in need of support to seek it. Families can call the Defence Member and Family Helpline on 1800 624 608. Serving men and women, veterans and families can contact Open Arms on 1800 011 046.

As I said in my opening remarks to the AUSMIN meeting, those who serve our country do so knowing the risk. They know the risk that service entails and they demonstrate every day the courage to take on that risk on our behalf, and we thank them for it.

These Australians were taking part in Talisman Sabre, the exercise that brings together 13 nations and more than 30,000 personnel. It is an unprecedented display of strategic cooperation and coordination driven by a common determination to preserve peace in the Indo-Pacific and in the world. As I have said on many occasions, we must ensure that no state will ever conclude that the benefits of conflict outweigh the risks. An exercise such as this is part of ensuring that no country makes the calculation that they can successfully dominate another. This is fundamental to ensuring the safety and security of our nation and of our people. This is the noble ideal that these four Australians volunteered to serve, to uphold and to defend.

All Australians owe a debt beyond measure to the brave men and women who wear our uniform—Australians who risk their lives in order to protect us and our way of life. On behalf of our nation, our thoughts and prayers are with the families, friends and colleagues of Captain Danniel Lyon, Lieutenant Maxwell Nugent, Warrant Officer Class 2 Joseph Laycock and Corporal Alexander Naggs. I thank the Senate.