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DANIEL:

From Schwartz Media, I’m Daniel James, this is 7am.

Australia is under threat and has never faced so many different threats at once.

That was the message from the Director-General of ASIO Mike Burgess, when he gave his annual threat assessment on Wednesday night.

ASIO’s work is usually classified, but Burgess has taken the extraordinary step of revealing some of the intelligence that has led him to sound the warning.

According to Burgess, espionage and foreign interference are at extreme levels and, just last year, ASIO foiled five attempted terror attacks on Australian soil.

Today, special correspondent for The Saturday Paper Jason Koutsoukis on why the national terror threat level is “probable”, and why it won’t be going down any time soon.

It’s Friday, February 21.

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DANIEL:

Jason, you were at the speech given by the Director-General of ASIO, Mike Burgess, where he laid out the security situation in Australia right now. Can you tell me what it was like to be in the room, who was there, and how significant this address was?

JASON:

Absolutely. I think, Daniel, other than the federal budget, I think this annual threat assessment speech delivered by Mike Burgess has become one of the marquee annual events in Canberra. Certainly the night of nights for Australia's intelligence community.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Welcome to the Ben Chifley building, welcome to ASIO, and welcome to my annual threat assessment.”

JASON:

The Australian Signals Directorate, the Australian Secret Intelligence Service, the Defence Intelligence Organisation. They all send representatives to this event.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Attorney General, the Honourable Mark Dreyfus KC, Chair, Deputy Chair and committee members of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence Security, Directors General, Inspector General…”

JASON:

And perhaps most surprising of all last night was that the, the Chinese Ambassador was, not only was he invited, but he accepted that invitation. And he was placed, you know, front and centre of the audience and he was placed in a position where the television cameras couldn't miss him. So, it's interesting that, you know, Mike Burgess is sending a message by the kinds of people that he's invited. And it just underscores the fact that this is a, a very highly choreographed event and that Mike Burgess, the Director-General of ASIO, he's someone who not only understands how the media works, but how to get the media to work to his advantage. And I think that's a really interesting aspect to his leadership.

DANIEL:

And there was a lot of news in his speech. Things like the terror level threat will be remaining at probable, and that it won't be going down any time soon. That Australia is under attack in all different ways, and that ASIO has foiled five terror plots on Australian soil just in the past year. So can you tell me what we know about these attempted attacks and how they are different from what we've seen in the past?

JASON:

One of the most alarming things that struck me about this speech was that there's been such a significant shift in the types of people likely to commit an attack. So, we’re still seeing religiously motivated violent extremism, but it's not the majority. So whereas, you know, perhaps 10 years ago we were seeing groups like ISIL, ISIS and Al Qaeda, you know, inspiring direct attacks here. Now, extremists tend to be much more self-radicalising.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Now, the most likely perpetrator of a terrorist attack is a lone actor from a family previously unconnected to extremism.”

JASON:

And I think what really stood out for me from the speech that the majority of threats are coming from racist, nationalist extremists who are trying to mainstream their beliefs and expand their movement. And they're doing this by very provocative, offensive and high profile stunts.

According to Mike Burgess, the greatest threat of violence comes from individuals on the periphery of these organised groups.

And another thing that is very striking about the nature of the threats that we face is that um, a lot of the potential threat actors are much younger people than we've seen in the past.

DANIEL:

So how young are we talking here, Jase?

JASON:

Mike Burgess said that the median age at which minors are first subject to ASIO investigation is now 15, which is pretty alarming when you think about it.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Many of the recent cases we’ve dealt with are as sad and sobering as they are shocking.”

JASON:

And Mike Burgess rattled off the types of things that are getting young people noticed by ASIO,

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Minors allegedly sharing beheading videos in the schoolyard. A 12-year-old allegedly wanting to blow up a place of worship. A 17-year-old watching Nazi propaganda and Klu Klux Klan videos and scrawling “Gas the Jews” on the wall of a classroom.”

JASON:

And according to Mike Burgess, these people are cherry-picking ideologies.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Traditional distinctions between extremists' motivations are breaking down. Individuals are cherry-picking seemingly antithetical ideologies to create new hybrid beliefs.”

JASON:

Burgess talked about one person being motivated by Islamic state propaganda and Neo-Nazi propaganda. Another person allegedly described himself as a left-wing environmentalist aligned with Adolf Hitler. Yet another person apparently considered himself to be a radical communist anarchist while allegedly embracing nationalist and racist violent extremism.

So all types of views, and that's increasing and will only be exacerbated by the online landscape going forward. Mike Burgess added that the impacts of social media, mental health, the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories, ubiquitous data encryption, a growing grievance and the radicalisation of minors, are all things that are swirling out there and making Australia's response to security threats more complex.

DANIEL:

After the break, how foreign governments are trying to sabotage AUKUS.

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DANIEL:

Jason, beyond radicalised young people, Mike Burgess also talked about the threat we face in Australia from other countries. Can you talk to me about some of the ways we know foreign governments interfere here in Australia?

JASON:

Perhaps one of the most interesting things that Mike Burgess said last night was that, if the spy game has a rule book, it's being rewritten. We're seeing a small number of authoritarian regimes behaving much more aggressively, much more recklessly, more dangerously, and more willing to engage in what Mike Burgess called high-harm activities here in Australia.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Australia's defence system will face greater threats from espionage, foreign interference and potentially sabotage over the next five years. Multiple countries are relentlessly seeking information about our military capabilities.”

JASON:

He cited an example of defence personnel being given gifts by their international counterparts.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“The presents contained concealed surveillance devices.”

JASON:

Mike Burgess also talked about AUKUS and, you know, how this has really become a big lure for foreign intelligence agencies.

Everything about the subs, you know, all of that very sensitive technology is information that foreign governments are desperate to get access to. They're trying to hack into our systems and get access to those very sensitive secrets.

Foreign governments are also picking up on the fact that AUKUS is not really overwhelmingly popular in a lot of sections of the community. And that as we move towards 2030, as the submarine project matures, we can expect foreign intelligence services to try to exploit that and even potentially sabotage the whole enterprise if tensions escalate.

DANIEL:

And how are foreign governments tapping into diaspora communities? What impact is that having?

JASON:

Mike Burgess talked about this thing which he calls coerced repatriations.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“Coerced repatriations can contribute to a culture of fear within the diaspora, reinforcing the perception that a hostile foreign government's reach extends across the Australian border.”

JASON:

So in a coerced attempt to repatriate someone, the foreign government applies so much pressure that the victim believes that they have no alternative but to leave Australia, irrespective of the consequence. These tactics include trying to strong arm people to report on other members of the diaspora community. They're threatening perceived dissidents and their family members with violence.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“If you're being pressured, I strongly urge you to contact the National Security Hotline. I also strongly urge those complicit in these activities to reconsider their involvement. We are watching and we have zero tolerance.”

According to Mike Burgess, ASIO is aware of at least four countries that have plotted, to use his words, this sort of despicable behaviour in Australia.

DANIEL:

And beyond forcing people back to other countries, he also raised the threat of state-sponsored killings.

JASON:

He did, and perhaps this was, you know, the most alarming part of his speech. That ASIO investigations have identified at least three different countries plotting to physically harm people living in Australia.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“In one operation, a foreign intelligence service wanted to silence an Australian-based human rights advocate.”

JASON:

And the scheme involved tricking the unsuspecting activist into visiting a third country where the plotters would be waiting, and they planned to arrange an accident.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“They planned to arrange an accident that was anything but accidental with the objective of seriously injuring or even killing the activist. Fortunately, ASIO intervened early to stop the travel and foil the plot before it occurred.”

JASON:

He said that more recently, last year in fact, ASIO Intelligence indicated a different hostile foreign intelligence service wanting to harm and possibly kill one or more individuals on Australian soil. But working with ASIO's international partners, the agency, you know, was able to determine this was part of a broader effort by this particular regime to eliminate critics of its government around the world.

DANIEL:

And this speech of course, Jason, comes just before an election. Talk to me about the significance of that timing.

JASON:

So obviously, Daniel, this is a big year in Australian politics. We've got a federal election that we expect, which has to be called by May 17.

You know, this is an event that is obviously very vulnerable to foreign interference. And Mike Burgess was at pains to point out to anyone contemplating any interference in our election process that ASIO already has officers embedded within the Australian Electoral Commission to protect the integrity of the of the upcoming election.

Audio Excerpt - Mike Burgess:

“If a foreign regime tries to meddle in the election by pressuring diaspora groups, directing foreign language newspapers, spreading disinformation on social media or using any other tactics sometimes seen overseas, we will know and we will act.”

JASON:

Consider yourself warned, he added.

DANIEL:

Jason, thank you so much for your time.

JASON:

Thanks Daniel.

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DANIEL:

Also in the news,

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a $2.4 billion support package for Whyalla and its Steelworks.

Mr Albanese described the joint state-federal package as an “investment in the nation”, and said “there is no industry more important for our nation than steelmaking”.

Whyalla produces 75% of the nation’s structural steel. The Steelworks which was owned by GFG Alliance, and chaired by British billionaire Sanjeev Gupta, was forced into administration by the state government on Wednesday.

The federal government also announced a new green iron investment fund to boost green iron manufacturing and supply chains.

And, Australia’s refugee community sponsorship program is now a permanent part of the country’s humanitarian intake.

The Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot, or CRISP, welcomed 500 refugees as part of a four year experiment where local groups of volunteers took on the role of traditional settlement services.

Yesterday, Assistant Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Julian Hill said of the experiment, quote, “it works”.

You can listen to our reporting on the scheme. The title of that episode is: “'I have eyes, but I don't see': The community groups helping refugees settle".

7am is a daily show from Schwartz Media and The Saturday Paper.

It’s made by Atticus Bastow, Cheyne Anderson, Chris Dengate, Erik Jensen, Ruby Jones, Sarah McVeigh, Travis Evans, Zoltan Fecso and me, Daniel James.

Our theme music is by Ned Beckley and Josh Hogan of Envelope Audio.

Tomorrow, we’re bringing you a bonus episode about the huge week in federal politics and when you can expect the election to be. I’ll catch you then.

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