Australia’s Minister for Justice, Michael Keenan, has warned the current terrorism threat in Australia and Indonesia is now higher than it was around the time of the Bali Bombings.

Mr Keenan says the countries are facing a greater threat with the possibility of radicals returning from fighting in Syria and Iraq.

“We know that once they return from those foreign fields of battle they can be radicalised and they pose a very significant national security threat,” he said.

Mr Keenan says initially the threat was from citizens returning from fighting with jihadists in Afghanistan.

“And the number of citizens that are going to fight in the wars in Syria and Iraq are greater,” he said.

He says that makes the terrorism threat bigger now.

Mr Keenan is in Indonesia to celebrate the 10th year of the Jakarta Centre for Law Enforcement Co-operation.

The Centre was set up by Indonesia and Australia in response to the Bali Bombings in 2002, which killed 202 people, including 88 Australians.

The Australian Government is proposing new laws that could see people charged for travelling to areas of so-called “terrorist activity”.