Opinion
The Wang-Wong doctrine: embrace and fight at the same time
China and Australia’s foreign ministers are both adept at the art of making frenemies. It’s working for now, but for how long?
Richard McGregorColumnistThis week’s visit to Australia by Wang Yi, China’s number one diplomat, has been filed away diplomatically as another episode in what the government calls the “stabilisation” of bilateral ties.
It is a nice, reassuring word which has the benefit of not being entirely inaccurate. Since Labor was elected in May 2022, top-level dialogue, frozen for years by Beijing, has been restored. Trade barriers are being lifted. Tourists and students are back.
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