DEFENCE Minister Stephen Smith has bagged coalition suggestions that Indonesia would accept a policy of towing back asylum seeker boats.
Deputy leader of the opposition Julie Bishop made the assertion on ABC TV's Q&A program on Monday night, saying Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa had discussed the policy with the coalition.
Ms Bishop referred to comments she made in the media that caused a furore last month, when she suggested Indonesian officials had privately indicated they would co-operate with the Liberal-National policy of turning back asylum seeker boats to Indonesia.
"I was talking about diplomatic language generally, where you read the signs, you read the nuances," Ms Bishop said.
"But in relation to Indonesia - separately - I am confident that given the discussions we've already had, as confirmed by Minister Natalegawa today, I am confident we will be able to implement our policies.
"He confirmed that the Indonesian government is open to discussion with the coalition about our policies.
"And he's confirmed essentially what we've been saying all along: that the Indonesian government is aware of our policies, they were aware of them 10 years ago when John Howard first introduced them, and he's confirmed that they are open to discussions with us."
Mr Smith rejected her version of events, saying Mr Natalegawa had simply said he would talk with the coalition to see what its policies were.
"So let's not let Julie over-egg it," Mr Smith said.
"The coalition has made it clear that irrespective of Indonesia's view - and there's more than one Indonesian official from the highest authority down (who) have made it clear - this is not a policy approach that they would welcome or that they'd co-operate with."
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