UN’s Ban urges rethink of Aussie refugee policy

THE world’s top diplomat has issued an extraordinary plea to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull over Australia’s asylum seeker policy, voicing unease over offshore detention and urging him to reconsider the nation’s entire border protection regime.

United Nations SecretaryGeneral Ban Ki-moon met Turnbull on the margins of the Asean Summit in Kuala Lumpur last week, trading his usual soft diplomacy for stronger language when discussing refugees and migrants in the Asia-Pacific region.

In a statement, the United Nations said Ban ‘‘expressed concern over the detention conditions in Australia’s offshore processing centres’’ and encouraged Turnbull to ‘‘reconsider’’ Operation Sovereign Borders, Australia’s militaryled regime to combat people smuggling and oversee borders.

Counter-terrorism dominated talks at the 18-nation summit, one of a string of international meetings attended by Turnbull less than three months into the job.

It came as the Australian navy turned away a suspected asylum seeker boat from Christmas Island on Friday, and as Australia prepares to accept 12,000 refugees fleeing devastation in Syria.

The UN statement said Ban acknowledged Australia’s longstanding commitment to refugee resettlement, but appealed to Turnbull to ‘‘share responsibilities’’.

The pair reportedly discussed problems in Syria and Iraq and exchanged views on preventing violent extremism.

‘‘The secretary-general indicated that he is preparing a comprehensive Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism for presentation to the General Assembly in the beginning of 2016, and looked forward to the support of Australia,’’ the statement said.

Speaking to reporters in Kuala Lumpur over the weekend, Turnbull said recent terrorist attacks in Paris and Bamako had focused attention on how to counter violent extremism.

‘‘We are intensifying our cooperation on counter terrorism with all of our partners in the region. Sharing intelligence, of course, is of critical importance,’’ he said, adding that countering terrorist messaging on social media was also a high priority.

Ban and Turnbull also discussed climate change and negotiations ahead of global climate talks in Paris later this month.

Ban ‘‘encouraged Australia to lead efforts to ensure a lowcarbon, climate-resilient future,’’ the UN statement said.