The Prime Minister, Taur Matan Ruak, on February 9th, 2023, held a meeting with the Attorney-General of Australia, Mark Dreyfus, at the House of Representatives (Australian Parliament), in the city of Canberra, in the Capital Territory of Australia, as part of his official visit to this country.
The Timorese Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Adaljiza Magno, the Ambassador of Timor-Leste in Canberra, Inês Almeida, and the Australian Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Bill Costello, attended the meeting.
During the meeting, the progress achieved in the scope of the strategic partnership for cooperation in the security sector was addressed. In addition, maritime security issues, combating transnational crimes (including illegal immigration, smuggling of goods and narcotics, and illegal fishing, among others), and the revival of the Timor-Leste National Police Development Program (PNTL- Portuguese acronym), known as TLPDP, were also addressed.
The Prime Minister, as Minister of the Interior, also took the opportunity to acknowledge the support received in the defence and security sectors, over the last twenty years, especially during the mandate of the 8th Constitutional Government, during which very favourable results were achieved in the development of infrastructure, training of human resources, and donation of essential equipment, where the delivery of two patrol boats for the PNTL stands out.