Andrew Bolt: Anthony Albanese’s grovelling to China now a danger to Australia’s security

Who is Anthony Albanese trying to fool pretending China didn’t just deliberately attack one of our navy helicopters? His weakness is inviting the very war that he fears.

Anthony Albanese’s grovelling to China is now a danger to Australia’s security. Check the Prime Minister now pretending China didn’t just deliberately attack one of our navy helicopters.

A Chinese jet fighter on Saturday dropped flares in front of one of our Seahawks from HMAS Hobart in international waters off Korea, forcing it to take evasive action to avoid being downed.

But Albanese at a press conference on Tuesday called this only an “incident”, adding: “We regard this as unprofessional.”

Who’s this guy trying to fool? This was not an “incident”. It was an unprovoked attack.

Nor was it “unprofessional”.

It was instead a professionally executed act of aggression and intimidation by China’s air force.

A Chinese jet fighter on Saturday dropped flares in front of one of our Seahawks from HMAS Hobart in international waters off Korea.

China’s foreign ministry has now confirmed exactly that, saying its attack was “professional” and a “necessary measure” against “an Australian military aircraft (which) deliberately flew within close range of China’s airspace in a provocative move that endangered China’s maritime and air security”.

Ignore that lie about our chopper being “provocative” and a danger to China. Here is China admitting our helicopter was outside China’s airspace, where it was enforcing international sanctions against North Korea.

Anthony Albanese at a press conference on Tuesday called this only an ‘incident’, adding: ‘We regard this as unprofessional’. Picture: Getty Images

So China confirms the attack was professional, deliberate and unjustified under international law, so why is Albanese misleading Australians?

Why is he suggesting this Chinese attack was just some kind of sloppy accident?

And why is he refusing to ring his new friend, Chinese dictator Xi Jinping, for a what-the-hell?

Albanese claimed on Tuesday that protests had been made to China “at every level”, but even that was false.

The next day – under pressure – he said protests had been made to China’s ambassador and someone in Beijing about this “incident” he again described as “unprofessional”, but no minister of this government has yet protested to any minister in China.

Nor is Albanese alone in trying to play down this brazen attack.

Foreign minister Penny Wong has said not one public word about China’s attack, which could have killed Australian airmen, and has also not complained to China’s foreign minister. Her silence is astonishing – even comic.

Albanese said nothing to President Xi, even when they met face-to-face at an APEC meeting, where Albanese shook Xi’s hand with a fawning grin. Picture: Getty Images

In the past four days, Wong has said nothing about China on her X account, posting instead how she’d spent her week “advancing First Nations and gender equality” with South America ambassadors, celebrating a new direct flight to Palau, discussing “challenges in Europe and the Middle East, and climate action” with Germany’s foreign minister and celebrating the return of some Aboriginal artefacts from a German museum.

What? No time in all that woke busy-busy to mention that China’s communist dictatorship had nearly brought down one of our navy helicopters?

This is beyond pathetic – but part of a disturbing pattern from a government which is dangerously keen to keep sweet with an aggressive military power now kicking sand in its face.

Last October, a Chinese navy vessel even set off a sonar pulse to injure Australian navy divers from HMAS Toowoomba who were in the sea, trying to clear a fouled propeller, and again in international waters.

Then, too, Albanese said nothing to President Xi, even when they met face-to-face at an APEC meeting, where Albanese shook Xi’s hand with a fawning grin.

In fact, the government didn’t reveal the attack on the Toowoomba divers until after APEC, ensuring journalists wouldn’t be demanding Albanese shirt-front Xi in public and spoil his story of mending bridges.

And this is exactly the problem – and danger.

In the past four days, Wong has said nothing about China on her X account. Picture: AFP

Albanese seems to treat his relationship with China’s leader as just a political gotcha against the Liberals.

He did it again on Tuesday, boasting he’d restored a “dialogue” with China that had broken down under the Morrison Liberal government, when it denounced China’s aggression.

“We do have communications with China,” crowed Albanese. “One of the things that had broken down over a period of time was any dialogue. Dialogue is important.”

It’s a strange “dialogue” when it means our prime minister must shut up. What’s “dialogue” worth if Albanese doesn’t dare call out China’s attack on our armed forces for exactly what it is?

I said Albanese’s weakness is a national security threat, and here’s why.

If you were Xi, what would you conclude from Albanese’s performance?

It’s obvious. You’d think he was so desperate to keep sweet with China that he’d put up with almost anything. You’d think he was so weak that should China, say, invade Taiwan as it has threatened, Albanese would do nothing.

See the danger? This weakness invites the war Albanese fears, and just when he’s leaving us too ill-equipped to fight.