Long road to negotiate with China

Persuading Beijing of the folly of its trade war against Australia was always going to be hard for Foreign Minister Penny Wong. At her first UN General Assembly address as Australia’s representative, and her second face-to-face meeting in 12 weeks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Senator Wong did well highlighting the dangers for both nations in the trade war. Trade has been the platform from which China has made historic achievements in poverty alleviation, she said. “Open, rules-based trade within the international system has underpinned economic development for both our countries,’’ she said. “We both have much to lose by the disintegration of that system.’’ That is incontrovertible.

Senator Wong was equally forthright denouncing Vladimir Putin’s “weak and desperate” actions in Ukraine and China’s responsibility as Mr Putin’s “no limits” partner to use its influence to end the war. Mr Putin’s invasion is in ever deeper trouble. Draft-age Russians have been fleeing in their tens of thousands since last week’s conscription announcement. Anti-conscription protests are sweeping Russia. Thousands have been arrested. Beijing’s implied backing for the Kremlin makes increasingly less sense. Yet President Xi Jinping has still not said a word against the Russian despot’s lawless assault on Ukraine, in defiance of the rules-based world order.

In his UN address on Saturday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was being disingenuous when he claimed “any sovereign, self-respecting state” would have done the same as Moscow and invaded Ukraine. He claimed sanctions against his country amounted to an “economic war against Russia”. In his UN address, Mr Wang appeared to walk a tightrope. “War only opens a Pandora’s box … we must address differences through peaceful means,’’ he said. China, Mr Wang claimed, was “keeping global industrial and supply chains up and running”. Mr Wang boasted of Beijing being “a major trading partner to over 130 countries”. Yet for reasons that make no sense, Australia is still targeted by trade sanctions that contravene WTO rules and conventions. Dialogue between Senator Wong and Mr Wang is a positive change from the previous lack of contact, at China’s insistence, but the challenge remains daunting. It may be, as Senator Wong says, “a long road in which many steps will have to be taken by both parties” before “a more stable relationship” between Beijing and Canberra can be restored.