Australia: no difference in approach to China under new government

This Penny Wong-Wang Yi meeting was preceded with a congratulatory message from Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang, and a very conciliatory message from the new Chinese Ambassador to Australia Xian Qian, during a speech at the University of Technology, Sydney.

However, Albanese appears to be locked into the same rhetoric as his predecessor demanding China lift sanctionsfrom Australian exports to China, and condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukrainebefore relations can be normalised. This went down very well in the Australian media.

China has a much more complex viewof the Russia-Ukraine conflict, where it criticized Russia’s invasion of a sovereign state very early on, but at the same time recognises Russia’s security concerns. China also condemned Western sanctions against Russia.

Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles met with Chinese Defence Minister General Wei Fenghe in Singapore. However, this one-hour meeting didn’t go as well, in what could be called a ‘mismatch of semantics.’

The greatest hinderance to the Australia-China relationship today is the Albanese government’s insensitivity todays China’s diplomatic narratives. The company Albanese has sought over Europe and the Indo-Pacific, like the NATO Summit, criticized China. Penny Wong’s activities in the Pacific Islands is seen as a rebuke to the Chinese presence there. Albanese’s likening Russia’s war with Ukraine to China’s policy on Taiwan received criticism from the English language China Daily. The ultimate objective of AUKUS is to develop the stealth capability to position submerged weapons off the coast of China.

The Albanese government doesn’t understand the history of South-East Asia where China has been there for centuries, coexisting with the various peoples. This is reflected in the foreign and defence policies of most ASEAN countries. Empathy (although this doesn’t mean agreement) is necessary to understand the Chinese position, where as a nation it is encircled by a web of US bases across the Indo-Pacific with offensive weapons.

China has a complex view of the world and has only asked Australia to refrain from looking at the world through black and white metaphors. With the number of Asian based political and strategic academics and Australian National University in Canberra, now with DFAT headed by a foreign minister of Asian heritage, its surprising the Albanese government still looks at the world in the same way as governments before it.

The only explanation for the Albanese Government’s stance is that public opinion and the general media have a hostile view of China. The government is playing to the electorate and appeasing the US in its current stance.

Putting the situation in the schoolyard metaphor, Australia is trying to punch well above its weight aspiring towards nuclear powered submarines. Here in Asia, there is a saying “your neighbours are the walls protecting your home.” Australia needs to look towards common strategic views with its close neighbours. Rather than pretend to be a member of NATO, and look for photo opportunities in the Ukraine, the immediate region should be the greatest priority.

The government might have changed, but like the last, Albanese still aspires for Australia to be a middle power. This is not going to work with China.