Labor has flagged increasing Australia’s diplomatic heft in the Pacific region and boosting foreign aid in a bid to combat China’s growing influence as the Coalition says the superpower’s tactics are growing more aggressive.
The opposition accused the government of a substantial national security failure after Solomon Islands signed a new security deal with China that experts warn could lead to Chinese ships and planes being based some 2000km from Australia’s east coast.
Peter Dutton and Penny Wong.Credit:Nine
Defence Minister Peter Dutton said China has changed over recent years, resorting to aggressive tactics and underhanded behaviour such as making “corrupt payments” to get the deals it wants.
He said if China’s recently struck security deal with Solomon Islands has happened in isolation, “that would be bad enough” but it followed a pattern seen in Sri Lanka and African nations.
Asked if corrupt payments had been made in the Solomons case, Dutton said, “It’s not something that I can comment on.”
“China’s incredibly aggressive, the acts of foreign interference, the preparedness to pay bribes to get outcomes and to beat other countries to deals. That’s the reality of the modern China,” he told Sky News.
But senior Labor frontbencher Jim Chalmers said the government had dropped the ball.
“For all the government’s chest-beating about China, the net result of that is a region which is less secure and a nation which is less safe,” he told ABC’s Insiders.
“This is a prime minister that went to the wrong island, went to Hawaii during the bushfires when his focus should have been on the Solomon Islands.”
Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare reiterated in a statement from his office on Saturday the security agreement was not about China establishing a military base in his country.
“It is not directed at any external security interest,” the statement said.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said he had no doubt Solomons believed that but equally, he was certain Beijing’s eventual goal was to set up a military base close to Australia.
“The Chinese government works to a long-term plan, and this is just another form of island-hopping, which is part of the strategic process used by either the United States or Japan and now China to get a presence,” he told Insiders.
“Obviously for the Solomons, I take their word, but I say, be really careful inviting a totalitarian power into your country because it is going to affect your sovereignty.”
Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong said on Sky on Sunday morning it was vital to approach relationships with Pacific nations by continually demonstrating that you were engaging in the issues they cared about, such as climate change.
“You don’t just respond to [increased competition by China] by telling people not to go elsewhere. You respond to it by becoming and being and staying the partner of choice,” she said.
Labor will announce within days its policy to rebuild trust and diplomatic relations with Pacific nations.
Chalmers flagged that would include increased foreign aid and a stronger diplomatic capacity.
“We need to earn the trust and we need to earn the friendship of our Pacific neighbours,” he said.
“Part of that relies on being credible partners on climate change and part of that relies on being meaningful partners when it comes to development assistance.”
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