Ask the Squiz: Ambassadors, NATO and shark culling

Ask the Squiz

It’s been a hectic start to the year in news, and off the back of that, Squizers have sent us some excellent questions to tackle in our first edition of Ask the Squiz for 2026… If you’ve ever wondered why we have ambassadors and what they do, or which countries are in NATO and why it exists, we’ve got you covered. And in the wake of the recent shark attacks in NSW, you had some questions about shark culling, so we’ll get you across the arguments for and against controlled fishing. Strap in…

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Listen time: 22 minutes

All about ambassadors

We’re starting with a question from Jacquie, who asks what exactly ambassadors do, why they’re needed, and who’s eligible for the role…
This is a great and timely question, given that former PM Kevin Rudd is soon to step down from one of our most important ambassador posts in the US, with Department of Defence Secretary Greg Moriarty to take his place in Washington DC from 1 April.

Tell me a bit about Greg Moriarty…
He comes with experience - before his role in defence, he was our ambassador to Iran and Indonesia, and prior to that, he was Liberal PM Malcom Turnbull’s chief of staff, and our first-ever counter-terrorism co-ordinator. So, he’s seen some things…

And what does the role entail - is it all swish receptions and parties…
It might look like a cushy gig from the outside but there’s a lot more to it than going to formal events. Officially, you’re the head of the embassy - an office that represents one country in the capital city of another. 

When do embassies become important?
Embassies - and consulates - become very important if/when Australians get into strife overseas. That could be because of criminal charges, natural disasters, or military conflicts - there’s a range of reasons. That’s the functional part; then there’s the diplomatic part…

What does that involve?
An important part of an ambassador’s role is to know what’s going on in the country they’re appointed to, in order to protect Australia’s interests. If the US is about to make a major announcement - which it does quite a lot at the moment - the ambassador and their team want to give the Australian Government a heads-up about what’s coming to help protect our interests. And they need to be on top of all the things happening behind the scenes too…

How do they do that?
Basically, they need really good relationships with people inside the government they’re appointed to. They’re not always going to get an official heads-up from the government of the country they’re in, particularly if that country has a strained relationship with Australia. So they need to build those relationships to be really effective. 

Got it… So, what does it take to be chosen for the gig?
There’s no specific qualification to be an ambassador, but people with strong diplomatic experience - public servants, career diplomats, politicians - tend to be chosen. In the case of the US, Moriarty is a slightly different choice because he’s not a politician, whereas the last 4 ambassadors in Washington have been. To jog your memory, they were Kim Beazley, Joe Hockey, Arthur Sinodinos, and then Kevin Rudd. They all had specific policy smarts and deep relationships with the US.

What’s the pay scale like…?
Depending on where in the world you’re going, the salary range is between $140,000 and $300,000. You’d expect the US ambassador to be on the high end there, whereas our ambassador to, say, Malta ,might not be quite on the same amount of dough. Depending on the role, they might also receive a living allowance, housing, and their families often travel and live with them too. But they’ll earn their money…

Is that because balancing diplomatic interests can be tricky?
Bingo… Take the US for example. The Trump administration has been unpredictable, to say the least, but America remains our most important security partner. And the US is often at loggerheads with China, our most important trading partner. Navigating those relationships - and throw in complicating factors like tariffs and the AUKUS security agreement - is not an easy job. 

What is NATO and who’s in it?

Annabelle asks: Can you explain all the different countries that are aligned with or a part of NATO?
Between tensions over Greenland and the Russia-Ukraine war, NATO has come up a lot in the news lately… It stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, and it’s a strategic alliance that has to do with defence and security.

How do countries join it?
Countries can apply for admission to NATO - and the most important thing to remember is that if you are a member, a military attack on you will lead to a collective military response from the rest of your NATO allies. Australia is not a member of NATO - due to that North Atlantic bit - but if we were, we could count on the other members coming to our defence if we were attacked. That’s called the Article 5 guarantee - and as you can imagine, it’s a pretty important club to be a part of. And it’s one that’s grown over time...

When was it originally formed?
It was created during the Cold War as a counter to the Soviet Union, but now it has a broader remit. It began with 12 countries. From North America: the US and Canada. From Western Europe: the UK, France, Italy and Portugal. From Scandinavia: Norway, Denmark and Iceland. And then there were the Benelux countries of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. That was in 1949, and then as the Cold War raged on, more countries joined.

Who else has signed on?
Greece and Turkey joined in 1952, Germany joined 10 years after World War II ended in 1955, and Spain got on board in 1982. After the Soviet Union collapsed, many countries in the east of Europe also joined. In 1999, we had Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic (Czechia). And then in 2004, there was a huge influx that included Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Slovenia - and then Albania, Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia followed.

Have any joined recently?
Yep… The last 2 countries to join came as a direct response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Finland and Sweden signed on in 2023 and 2024 - so there are now 32 countries in total. Finland is especially relevant, because it shares a long border with Russia. That’s become a big issue…

Why is that?
Drones used by the Russian military in its war on Ukraine have drifted into Finnish airspace. If NATO ever decides the encroachment of those drones constitutes an attack, it will have to respond… Article 5 is one of the sticking points in the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine because Russia refuses to accept a peace deal where Ukraine becomes a member of NATO. 

What’s the problem?
You might remember that one of the big agitation points from Russian President Vladimir Putin as he stepped towards war with Ukraine nearly 4 years ago was the threat of NATO coming further east from Western Europe. Putin does not want any other NATO nations on his borders.

And that defence treaty is why Ukraine really wants to be part of NATO…?
Yep… But NATO’s not rushing into it, because that Article 5 commitment essentially puts the UK, Western Europe, and the US in a war with Russia - which would essentially be WWIII…  Instead, Ukraine is negotiating security guarantees with the US and the EU, and that’s been a running theme for a while now.

Should sharks be culled?

Jess asks: Can you provide more information on controlled fishing and why this is no longer a supported practice, and is there any indication the NSW Government will become supportive of controlled fishing and culling again in light of the recent shark attacks? 
There’s a lot of focus on sharks right now and how we can manage the risks involved when we swim in the ocean, especially after 4 incidents last week - one on the NSW mid-north coast and 3 in Sydney (one of those ending tragically in the death of 12yo Nico Antic, who was bitten by what was suspected to be a large bull shark in Sydney Harbour).

What’s happened since?
In light of those attacks, there’s been calls by some sections of the community for more aggressive measures to control shark numbers. One prominent voice in the mix is former PM Tony Abbott - he’s calling for the reintroduction of a commercial shark fishery to reduce shark populations. That means that it’d be open slather on shark fishing for commercial purposes (so, selling it for flake to eat, or the skin for leather).

What is his argument for that?
You might remember photos of Abbott from his time as PM in his budgie smugglers - he’s still a volunteer lifesaver at Queenscliff on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, and he remains very invested in this debate… He says the current protections prioritise sharks over the safety of humans, and “frankly, if it's a choice between people and animals, I'm on the side of the people every time”. And he’s not alone there…

Who else is on board?
Some marine ecologists have noted that Australia already manages other species like kangaroos and brumbies through culling when their numbers are considered too high. And there are also some fishing and surfing operators calling for a bigger conversation about culling who say they’ve noticed a large increase in shark activity, particularly around Sydney’s beaches. Adding to that, The Daily Telegraph also polled its readers and 68% of the 2,060 respondents said they supported a reduction in shark numbers. So there is some public pressure building around this…

How has the NSW Government responded?
As it stands, the NSW Government and Premier Chris Minns have ruled out the culling of sharks. Something to note is that it’s not actually illegal to fish for sharks in Australia - there are just very strict restrictions in place, and they vary from state to state.

As an example, what’s the law in NSW?
In NSW, anglers can catch and keep a total of 5 sharks or rays per day but they’re only allowed to keep one of certain types of protected species including Tiger Sharks, Wobbegongs, Makos and Whalers (bull sharks are in that category). And others like Whites, Grey Nurse or Hammerheads are illegal to be kept and have to be released straight away. So it’s highly restricted, which is very different to controlled fishing, or culling, which means deliberately targeting a species in order to reduce numbers.

What is the NSW Government proposing?
Instead of going in that direction, the Minns Government has announced $4.2 million in extra funding for its shark management program… That money’s going towards bull shark tagging, additional drones to monitor beaches, and more public education - which is something that’s emerged as an issue for a lot of people who may not have been aware that shark activity increases after heavy rain. Those measures are in line with the views of many marine scientists quoted over the past week…

What have marine scientists been saying?
They say that culling sharks to deliberately reduce their numbers isn’t actually supported by evidence as a way to make beaches safer. They also say it would be harmful to the marine ecosystem…

How so?
They say that sharks are apex predators and that removing them would disrupt the entire marine ecosystem, meaning it can unbalance food chains and harm biodiversity… 

What protections are currently in place?
At the moment, a lot of city beaches are protected by shark nets and SMART drumlines (that stands for Shark Management Alert In Real Time). They allow for sharks to be tagged, released and tracked. But the nets come with their own issues…

What sort of issues?
They’re known to entangle lots of other non-threatening species like dolphins, turtles and rays. According to Shark Smart NSW, the majority of animals caught in nets along the state’s coast historically haven’t been sharks. But the Government says it’s not making any moves to remove them at this stage. It says there’s no ‘silver bullet’ and that we share the ocean with sharks and the focus should be on making informed decisions and educating people about when and how to safely swim. 

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Onto our Recommendations…

Reading/watching: This piece in The Conversation dives deeper into the appointment of Greg Moriarty as our US ambassador when Kevin Rudd leaves the post at the end of March. And for a watching recco, Andrew reckons The Diplomat on Netflix is an excellent peek into that world…

Listening/Reading: This Squiz Shortcut we did on NATO after Russia invaded Ukraine is a good backgrounder, and here’s NATO’s list of member countries and the stories of how/when they joined…

Reading: This article from Macquarie University’s The Lighthouse comprehensively covers the arguments around shark culling, and if you’re after more info on the recent spike in shark attacks, we covered it in a Squiz Shortcut…

Keep your questions coming…

We’ll be back with another edition of Ask the Squiz in February - so if you’ve got a question on your mind you’d like answered about the news, send it through to [email protected] or leave us a voice memo here (it’s super easy to do)...

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