Susie O’Brien: Australia could be the victim of US-China failures
US President Donald Trump is busy waging war on science, reason and facts, however the US’s failures of leadership pale in comparison to China’s secrecy and cover-up in relation to the outbreak of the coronavirus, writes Susie O’Brien.
Susie O'Brien
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The US Department of Homeland Security says Chinese leaders “intentionally concealed the severity” of the COVID-19 pandemic to give it time to import vital medical supplies.
It’s a frightening claim that shows how far China will go to protect its own people at the expense of everyone else.
Australia was one of the countries unwittingly exporting vital medical equipment in January and February — items that our own people needed within weeks.
It’s hard to forget the sight of the huge containers full of medical supplies being sent to China at the time.
Remember the workers from Risland Australia proudly standing next to some of the 90 tonnes of surgical masks and other equipment destined for the Chinese city of Wuhan?
The company called it an “exceptional and meaningful day”.
Another company with links to the Chinese Communist Party, Greenland Australia, shipped out an estimated three million surgical masks, 500,000 pairs of gloves and bulk supplies of sanitiser and antibacterial wipes.
Countries like ours were forced to buy this equipment back at inflated prices in a mad scramble to keep our own citizens safe.
The Chinese consulate has since tried to rewrite history, telling us it was “buying time for other countries to fight the pandemic” when it was in fact buying up more than 2.5 billion items of protective equipment.
It’s a stark reminder that when it comes to China, we’re the minnow and they’re the whale. We rely on them for cheap imports, export markets and business investment. Risland Australia, for instance, is building a $1.9 billion new suburb on Melbourne’s outskirts.
And yet the health and security of our people matter little when our interests diverge.
This is true in their handling of the coronavirus.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is right to say that the “Chinese Communist Party did all that it could to make sure that the world didn’t learn in a timely fashion about what was taking place” in Wuhan.
Not only did Chinese officials fail to inform the World Health Organisation on December 1 when the first case of the coronavirus was detected, they waited until January 20 to make public statements.
Revelations from US leaders like Pompeo are symptomatic of the serious decline in the relationship between China and the US.
There are implications for Australia, which is a small country caught between two superpowers.
While we’re finally seeing the cost of being so closely aligned with China, we can no longer look to the US for sensible leadership on such matters.
US President Donald Trump is busy waging war on science, reason and facts, such as suggesting his own people should inject themselves with disinfectant to protect themselves against the virus.
His administration was also slow to take decisive measures against the spread of the virus in their country, which experts say has contributed to the US having the highest death toll of any country — more than 67,000 people.
However, the US’s failures of leadership pale in comparison to China’s secrecy and cover-up in relation to the outbreak of the virus.
Chinese authorities have not allowed foreign scientists in to investigate the origins of the virus
or obtain samples from the Wuhan wet market or nearby laboratories.
We need to know how the virus originated and under what conditions it spread.
With the world heading to the worst recession since the Great Depression and the international death toll nearly reaching 250,000, China owes it to the global community to be open and accountable.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has publicly called for an independent inquiry, and it’s good to see his strong stance.
With the US led by a Looney-Tunes president and China protecting no one but itself, it’s time for Australia to step up and look after our own interests.
We need to boost local manufacturing and crack down on foreign ownership of key national security locations such as the Port of Darwin and companies such as dairies, grocery brands and minerals.
And we need to ensure medical supplies and other essential goods are made right here so they’re always available for our own people, not shipped offshore in times of crisis.
Susie O’Brien is a Herald Sun columnist