Mr SERCOMBE (9:40 AM) —The forthcoming Olympics are of historical importance for all Australians. Some aspects of the circumstances surrounding the games have particular significance for particular sections of Australians. In my electorate there is a very large Macedonian Australian community. It is of great interest to them that, in the context of the Olympics, there will be the first visit to Australia of a Macedonian head of state. President Boris Trajkowski is a most impressive man. I had the opportunity to meet him in Skopje, Macedonia, last year at the height of the Kosovo conflict, which was right on the doorstep of Macedonia, and when that country was experiencing massive problems.

President Trajkowski is visiting Australia via the United States, where he has particularly high level access, including to President Clinton. In Australia, in addition to being here for the Olympics, he will also be taking the opportunity to launch a pay television service by satellite linking Australia and Macedonia. It is most important that President Trajkowski, on his visit to Australia, has high level access to Australian leaders. The absence of a diplomatic mission of Macedonia in Australia underlines the importance of this need for personal contact.

I understand that during the visit he will be attending a reception hosted by the Prime Minister and the Governor-General for visiting dignitaries, but it is most important that, with this opportunity of the historic first visit of a Macedonian head of state, there be one-on-one meetings between Australian leaders, including, hopefully, the Prime Minister, and President Trajkowski. As I said, this is a leader who does enjoy top level access in the United States and it would seem singularly appropriate that that also occurs in Australia.

I have no doubt that one of the substantive issues on his agenda at any such meeting would be the question of diplomatic representation in Australia. This has been an issue for some time. I can say, from the visit I made to that part of Europe last year, that in Skopje the Greek embassy is quite noticeable. And when one visits Athens the Macedonian embassy is quite noticeable. So there is no issue between those two countries in terms of diplomatic representation. Sometimes the sensitivity in the past of that relationship has been given as a reason for perhaps delaying the question of Macedonian representation in Australia. As I said, it is not an issue in that part of Europe; those two countries enjoy close relationships, economically and politically. One would hope that the visit of President Trajkowski to Australia would present the opportunity for top level dialogue between Australian officials and Macedonian officials, and the resolution of this issue.