Anthony Albanese will seek further assurances on Australia’s fuel supply during the first prime ministerial visit to Brunei in more than a decade.
The prime minister departed Sydney on Tuesday for a four-day visit to Brunei and Malaysia for talks aimed at safeguarding the flow of petrol and diesel.
Both nations play important roles in Australia’s fuel supply chains, and the trip will build on Mr Albanese’s recent visit to Singapore, another vital exporter.
Along with Foreign Minister Penny Wong, on Tuesday Mr Albanese will visit the Brunei Darussalam-Australia Memorial, where they will lay a wreath.
The site is dedicated to the 127 Australians who were killed and hundreds more who were wounded liberating Brunei and British North Borneo (now Malaysia) from Japanese occupation at the end of World War II.
Mr Albanese is the first Australian prime minister to visit Brunei since Tony Abbott in 2013 for the East Asia Summit.
On Wednesday, he will meet with Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah on Wednesday, where fuel will be high on the agenda.
Swinburne University engineering expert Hussein Dia described the trip as part of regional “fuel diplomacy” efforts aimed at ensuring long-term supply.
Brunei ships about nine per cent of Australia’s diesel while Malaysia is the third-biggest supplier, according to the government.
“I don’t think it’s a sign of immediate shortage or to say ‘give us priority’, it’s really to maintain flow,” Professor Dia said, adding the government was likely “planning for a prolonged period of uncertainty”.
“It just reinforces that we are good partners and we are coming just to seek reassurances and just build on this.”
Brunei also supplies about 10 per cent of urea imports, which is used to make fertiliser.
Australia is Brunei’s largest trading partner, with energy accounting for the largest source.
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