The Federal Labor Government has admitted its embarrassment after Foreign Minister Stephen Smith accidentally tabled in Parliament confidential details of Australia's current bilateral treaty negotiations. Trade Minister Simon Crean acknowledged that the document included specific instructions that it not be publicly disclosed, owing to the sensitivity of foreign governments and the Australian Government's own diplomatic interests. ''That's the embarrassment.

It shouldn't have been tabled.

It hasn't been tabled in the past,'' Mr Crean said. Mr Smith accepted responsibility for his ''error'' and his office confirmed that the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade was advising relevant countries of the inadvertent disclosure.

The confidential list of bilateral treaty negotiations was included on a CD tabled in Parliament with Mr Smith's authority on Wednesday. The schedule included details of numerous treaty negotiations not previously disclosed, including talks on a new defence agreement with Indonesia and plans to broaden the scope of Australia's nuclear safeguards agreement with China.

The Opposition warned the blunder would harm Australia's international reputation.

''Australia's trading partners must now question the ability of the Rudd Government to ensure that sensitive and confidential negotiations are not made public,'' Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Julie Bishop said. Australian Greens nuclear spokesman Senator Scott Ludlam expressed strong concern about the revelation of new negotiations concerning the proposed export of copper concentrates from BHP Billiton's Olympic Dam mine in South Australia for extraction of uranium and copper in China. He noted that BHP's expansion plans were predicated on significant amendments to and possible weakening of Australia's nuclear safeguards agreement with China.

''The accidental tabling of this material begs the question as to why these negotiations are conducted in secrecy,'' he said.

''Australia needs to be absolutely certain that materials sent to nuclear weapon states will not be used in nuclear weapons.'' Anti-nuclear groups also expressed concern about the negotiations.

Australian Conservation Foundation nuclear campaigner David Noonan said any amendments to Australia's safeguards agreement with China would have to be subject to scrutiny by Federal Parliament's Treaties Committee. ''DFAT are compromising nuclear safeguards to suit BHP's commercial interests in seeking unprecedented arrangements for the sale of uranium in bulk concentrates,'' he said.

''The Treaties Committee should test China on compliance with the same set of recommendations they made against going ahead with proposed uranium sales to Russia including complete separation of the military from civilian nuclear sectors.'

Secret document bungle puts uranium exports at risk