China diplomat grills mayor over AUKUS submarine location

A top China diplomat used a meeting behind closed doors to grill a NSW mayor about the future location of AUKUS nuclear submarines, raising serious security questions.

A top Chinese diplomat used a closed-doors meeting with a local mayor to probe for information about where the AUKUS nuclear submarines will be docked, in a move the Opposition said should “ring alarm bells at the highest levels of government”.

Wang Yu, the Consul General of China in Sydney, also warned Newcastle City Lord Mayor Ross Kerridge that Australia shouldn’t use “relations with other countries to adversely affect China”, according to minutes of the intimate meeting, obtained by The Daily Telegraph.

The document shows the sit-down was requested by Mr Wang and held last Thursday in the council’s office, during Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s six-day visit to China.

Notes taken during the meeting reveal the Consul General’s (CG) probing for defence details, including whether submarines obtained under the AUKUS deal would be docked in Newcastle, which has the east coast’s largest port.

“CG explained that China is concerned that Chinese interests in Australia will be affected by strategic defence decisions,” the minutes read.

“For example, is Newcastle Port a potential base for AUKUS submarines?

“(The Lord Mayor) explained that we are a nuclear free city but we will not have the means to stop a decision of this nature taken by the state and/or federal governments.”

“China expects that Australia and Newcastle will have good relations with other countries and is also looking to build good relations but would not like us … to use our good relations with other countries to adversely affect China.”

Newcastle City Council Lord Mayor Ross Kerridge. Picture: Facebook

Mr Wang also asked about Newcastle’s Tibetan and Taiwanese communities, before telling the Lord Mayor China is “against any kind of support” for either country.

“The CG explained China’s position on official engagements with Taiwan and Tibet. China is against any kind of support for Taiwan or Tibet which includes engagements by local officials. China will not compromise on this issue,” the document states.

In response to questions from The Telegraph, the Consulate General of China in Sydney’s office did not answer why AUKUS was discussed, saying: “It is our responsibility to engage and exchange views with all institutions and local governments in NSW for bilateral relations”.

A spokesman for the Lord Mayor said the sit-down was a “meet and greet and to talk about Sister City relationships”.

“The China Consul General had never been to Newcastle before and wanted to introduce himself. The Consul General is new in the role. The Consul General met with other stakeholders in Newcastle,” he said.

He confirmed no advice was sought from the Department of Foreign Affairs or other government officials on the meeting, saying the Lord Mayor’s role “is to represent the Council at intergovernmental forums at regional, state and Commonwealth level”.

He said “no other discussion about AUKUS was entered into”.

Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China in Sydney, Wang Yu. Picture: Google

The Chinese delegation met with the Newcastle Lord Mayor, his chief of staff Gina Hanson and government relations adviser Nikki Taylor.

Meanwhile, Mr Wang was joined by five offsiders, including his wife Zhang Hong and economic and commercial affairs consul Ye Wei.

The offices of Defence Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong declined to comment.

Liberal Senator Maria Kovacic, the duty senator for the Hunter, said the meeting should “ring alarm bells at the highest levels of government”.

“While the Prime Minister was in Beijing, the Chinese Consul General was quietly holding a closed-door meeting with the Lord Mayor of Newcastle, raising Tibet, Taiwan and whether AUKUS submarines could be based in the port of Newcastle,” she said.

Australia is set to receive at least three submarines from the United States under the AUKUS deal. Picture: Getty Images

Ms Kovacic said Newcastle was a “critical defence hub”, with an air force base at Williamtown, a shared civil-military airport and a port that could support AUKUS operations.

“For the Lord Mayor to entertain a secret meeting with a Chinese official asking pointed geopolitical questions is in my view, naive to the potential national security risks,” she said.

It came as the Australian Government confirmed another $800 million instalment to the US was paid earlier this year as part of the AUKUS submarine-supply agreement, taking the total payments to $1.6 billion.

Originally published as China diplomat grills mayor over AUKUS submarine location