The Defence Minister’s Cabinet colleagues must be able to rely him on to provide authoritative guidance on the legal use of military force. The public has a right to expect his statements on international law to be meaningful and correct. Richard Marles has not demonstrated that capacity. (more…)
Category: China
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What does China’s censor censor?
The Chinese trust their government media, but we distrust ours because they have, for so long, distracted us from important issues and lied to us about war. Lee Kuan Yew framed the issue around the Philippines’ media. (more…)
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What to do about the Treasure Island of Taiwan
“Sir, with no intention to take offence, I deny your right to put words into my mouth,” Captain Smollett said in Stevenson’s classic Treasure Island. (more…)
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The Chinese Ambassador and our ignorant and hostile media
We should be alarmed, if not ashamed, at how some of these journalists behaved and reported. (more…)
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Is the Liberal Party abandoning war talk on China?
Is Dutton also preparing to shift ground? (more…)
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Does the US know what it is doing, and mean what it says, over Taiwan?
The Chairman of the US Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, seemed quietly confident this week that Australia would be standing side-by-side with the US and Taiwan if China attempted to retrieve its errant and rebellious province by force of arms. Perhaps he knows something I don’t. (more…)
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Teow Loon Ti: Nancy Pelosi, the Straw that Taiwan clutched
Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, delivered a resounding slap to the face of Xi Jinping and left, leaving the Taiwanese to pick up the pieces of the damage she did to the Taiwan/China relationship. (more…)
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Moon of Alabama – How Pelosi’s visit hurts Taiwan
When Nancy Pelosi made her ‘woke’ flight to Taiwan the U.S. seemed to hope for a Chinese military reaction to it. It positioned an aircraft carrier and two amphibious landing ships in the region. It also shipped additional fighter planes to Japan and South Korea. (more…)
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Bob Carr – Keep the peace between China and the US: our goal
If there is conflict between the US and China this is how things might go- a crisis meeting of the Australian cabinet with a resigned air and desultory exchanges, until someone – defence minister or prime minister – says something like, “Well, there’s no alternative, is there?” (more…)
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Pelosi visit-‘China wise not to attack plane’
Former US President Donald Trump, said the visit would “make trouble” and “cause great friction”. (more…)
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Canberra wants a new arms race in Asia
Australia’s new defence minister has warned the region is facing a dangerous military build-up. His solution? Let’s arm to the teeth with America’s help. (more…)
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Australia can safely improve its relations with China. Here’s how
In 2012, the then-prime minister of Vanuatu Sato Kilman, was passing through Sydney Airport. Without warning, the Australian Federal Police swooped and arrested his Australian secretary on charges of tax evasion. Kilman was furious a staffer had been “kidnapped” and, back in Port Vila, threatened to tear up the agreement under which Australia trained his police, and invite China to take over. (more…)
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Martin Kwan: Another anti China media furphy on Kiribati’s withdrawal from Pacific Islands Forum
Some speculate that Kiribati’s exit from the Pacific Islands Forum was a decision influenced by China. However, the more tenable view is that this has nothing to do with China. Offloading the blame on China will unhelpfully distract focus from the inner regional issues. (more…)
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The China threat industry and journalists who had never been to China, became sudden overnight experts
The Albanese Government seems unwilling to provide leadership to the community on how to understand the rise of China and as many qualified military analysts have pointed out, Australia now faces up to a twenty-year gap in our defence capability. So much for the threat.
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Misconstruing China’s ‘demands’, Australian media beat the drums of war
After three years in deep freeze, Australia’s relationship with China may be starting to thaw, with the foreign affairs ministers finally talking to each other. (more…)
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Anthony Albanese must get real about China
Penny Wong is professional and diligent, but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese needs to change his advisers on China. (more…)
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Remarks on the Australia-China divide at the AsiaLink launch of Happy Together, by David Walker and Li Yao.
The juxtaposition and interweaving of life stories from Australia and China make for endlessly fascinating reading. (more…)
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When words matter: Reviewing the Wong-Wang meeting
Failure to recognise linguistic nuances partly explains the misinterpretation of the meeting by Birtles and other journalists. (more…)
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Liu Xiaobo and his Nobel peace prize
Wednesday, 13 July 2022, will mark the fifth anniversary of the passing of China’s human rights activist, Liu Xiaobo. The controversy surrounding his Nobel Peace award and his death is revisited. (more…)
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An open letter to Boris Johnson about his ignorance of Hong Kong
On the 25th Anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and in the British national interest, there should be a correct understanding of the situation in Hong Kong. It is important for there to be a healthier relationship with China.
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Anthony Albanese on China – What next? The Taiwan conflict
The large Chinese diaspora that helped Labor win office in the hope of better relations with China could switch its support to less hawkish Teal candidates likely to contest Labor seats at the next election. (more…)
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Anthony Albanese on China – What next on the human rights dilemma?
China is reported as undemocratic, persecuting Tibetan and Uighur minorities, incarcerating Hong Kong separatists, and having border skirmishes. But many other countries fit that label too, yet we court them rather than shun them. A notable example is Myanmar, where Australia refuses to join other Western nations in imposing sanctions on the military junta for its genocide against Muslim Rohingyas. Until last year, Australia gave military assistance to the regime. (more…)
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Anthony Albanese on China – What Next? Who started the trade war?
Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese is perpetuating the myth that China’s action in 2020 to restrict Australian exports was a bolt out of the blue that was uncalled for. (more…)
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What is Anthony Albanese up to!
Anthony Albanese has shown during his recent trip to Europe that he is a prime minister addicted to hyperbole and oblivious to how countries can change in unexpected ways. (more…)
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Hong Kong is weathering the storm very well despite the usual critics.
Nine months ago, and 15 months on from the implementation of the new national security law in Hong Kong P&I published a piece I put together summarising developments over those 15 months. Nine months later as Hong Kong celebrates the 25th anniversary of the handover in 1997 and two years on from the implementation of the NSL it seems appropriate to once again provide an update. (more…)
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The Albanese government’s policy on China so far is beyond disappointing
Prime Minister Albanese is happy to begin his prime ministership by fawning on the U.S., Japan and NATO, while all three move further away from China as a systemic competitor, threat or worse. (more…)
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The Hong Kong diaries: Patten revives colonialism, trying to attract interest
Although the United Kingdom traditionally regarded Hong Kong as a colony, this changed over time. (more…)
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Peter Drysdale and Shiro Armstrong: Australia must find common purpose with China
Both nations depend heavily on a multilateral trading system. Strengthening it together is a way of managing their troubled bilateral relationship. (more…)
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A word on war with China
Professor Hugh White argues, in an essay, ’If growing US-China rivalry leads to ‘the worst war ever’, what should Australia do?’ published in Pearls and Irritations on 26 June, that, ‘..the very real possibility that a war with China launched to preserve the US’s position in Asia might end up destroying it, just as the First World War destroyed the empires that went to war to preserve themselves in 1914.’ (more…)
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If growing US-China rivalry leads to ‘the worst war ever’, what should Australia do?
Should Australia join the United States in a war against China to prevent China taking the US’s place as the dominant power in East Asia? Until a few years ago the question would have seemed merely hypothetical, but not anymore. (more…)