Since his arrival in August 2018, United States Consul General Michael Kleine has immersed himself in Melbourne culture and our local community, taking every opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of the place he has called home for the last three years. As his posting comes to an end, I sat down with the Consul General to reflect on his time in Australia and his perspective on key issues.
Consul General’s Time in Australia
Michael Kleine came to Australia with around twenty years of experience at the State Department. He was previously posted to Laos, South Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Kosovo. However, it is his posting in Melbourne as Consul General which he called the “highlight of [his] career”. In his role as Consul General, Mr Kleine has been responsible for representing U.S. interests in Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, and the Northern Territory. This has given Mr Kleine exposure to bilateral trade relations, geopolitical regional issues, military collaborations, and other important ties between the U.S. and Australia.
When asked about his experiences as Consul General, Mr Kleine listed various accomplishments he believed were successful in making relations between our countries stronger. However, the Consul General noted that the proudest moment of his posting was when the Consulate provided logistical assistance during the Victorian Bushfires in 2019. Working with Australian ground forces and the U.S. Departments of State and the Interior, the Consulate provided assistance in getting over 350 firefighters to help fight wildfires in Victoria and New South Wales.
“The thing I am the proudest most of is helping to facilitate the arrival of American firefighters in 2019 for the bushfires.”
Mr Kleine also dedicated a significant portion of his time to young people throughout his tenure, engaging further with the community so as to learn more about their concerns. He achieved this through his CG Coffee Chats in which he would hear the thoughts and perspectives of Australian youth. He commented that answers from those he sat down with were “remarkably consistent”, be it discussions on moving out of home, climate change or indigenous issues.
One key aspect of his discussions with young people and the wider community was the remarkable “spirit of entrepreneurship” displayed. The Consul General consequently provided further support for local entrepreneurs in helping them enter the American market. To encourage entrepreneurship, the Consulate sponsored a delegation of entrepreneurs to attend the Global Investment Summit, giving them the chance to share their ideas and learn more about opportunities for business in the United States. Mr Kleine also started a podcast entitled 37 Degrees Latitude in which he spoke with entrepreneurs about their experiences. Named after the 37th degree south and north latitudes on which Melbourne and Silicon Valley respectively lie on maps, the podcast aimed to provide entrepreneurs insight into how they could break into American markets and collaborate with partners across the Pacific.
Mr Kleine pointed out that during his posting U.S. business relations have remained “pretty consistent with the rest of the country”, with the U.S. further focusing on collaborations in the health industry, artificial intelligence, big data, and advanced manufacturing. In particular, Mr Kleine commented on the “huge collaboration” between the United States and Australia in the space industry through the development of the Australian Space Agency in South Australia. It is these emerging and knowledge-based industries which Mr Kleine claimed would be an ever-expanding component of bilateral trade relations.
Current Global Issues
Mr Kleine’s term comes to an end during an unprecedented time in modern history with the COVID-19 pandemic upending global affairs and various other challenges to the multilateral international system. This includes current tensions in the Asia-Pacific caused by a powerful China asserting dominance and challenging regional stability. In response to these challenges, the Consul General reasserted the position of the Biden Administration that all countries have to “work with partners, allies and friends” in order to ensure stable relations. In particular, Mr Kleine spoke on the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (‘the Quad’), the strategic alliance between the United States, Japan, Australia, and India, as a means of fostering stability.
“The Quad will come into its own in the next five years. Four huge vibrant democracies in terms of focused resources, be it climate change, COVID-19, or big technologies. All four countries have bought into this at the highest level.“
Mr Kleine’s term also has coincided with major political events in the United States, with President Trump leaving office in January after the election of Joe Biden and the Capitol Riots. Mr Kleine has devoted much time to human rights and racial equality, with the Consul General also noting his respect for Indigenous Australians and the strong impact of learning about Indigenous issues. After the events of the Capitol Riots and the Black Lives Matters protests, Mr Kleine spoke out further about racial issues, noting the importance of discussing societal problems so as to gain a further understanding and get insight into the perspectives of others.
“It is part of the discussion on values. It is part of the values we hold as people. It is one of the fundamental values of the United States. We should talk about these issues… It is a conversation worth having.”
Final Reflections
Mr Kleine has said he will miss the city, noting that he “loved walking around the alleyways and feeling a sense of déjà vu like [he] was back in New York in the 1980s”. With his wife and two children also in Australia, Mr Kleine noted how sad it will be to leave Melbourne due to the great culture and the memories they have all collected. This also includes personal memories such as the pride he felt when his kids spoke on SBS Radio about their experiences in Australia and his trips to various parts of the country.
Prior to the commencement of his next role, Mr Kleine will take four weeks’ leave, returning home to the United States for the first time since before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. He will then commence his next posting as Deputy Chief of Mission of the United States Embassy in Indonesia. In his concluding remarks, he left one final piece of advice for aspiring diplomats:
“You have to be curious. You have to be passionate. You have to know what you are doing and why. You have to know what you are bringing to the table for your government. Come in with an open mind. Listen to your staff. Listen to your team. And meet as many people as you can.”
