China celebrates Anthony Albanese’s US warship snub

China lauds PM’s failure to meet a US request for a Red Sea warship as evidence Australia is ‘distancing itself’ from its closest ally.

The cartoon run in The Global Times, as it celebrated the Albanese government’s refusal to send a warship to the Middle East.

Anthony Albanese has effectively ruled out sending a warship to the Red Sea following a US request, a position lauded by China as evidence Australia is “distancing itself” from its closest ally.

The Prime Minister said that while Australia would consider providing more shore-based ­personnel to the US-led effort to secure the waterway, “the US ­understands the best way for us to support this is through diplomatic support”.

The opposition said the government’s decision to decline the US request had undermined Australia’s reputation as a dependable partner just days after the US congress agreed to provide Australia with nuclear submarines.

“The inaction of the Albanese government makes Australia a less reliable partner and ally at a time when our alliances and ­partnerships are increasingly ­important,” said opposition ­foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham.

The pledge of diplomatic backing for the mission to protect shipping from Iranian-backed Houthi rebels came barely a week after the Albanese government refused to vote with the US on a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

China’s state-run Global Times newspaper welcomed the government’s reluctance to send a warship to the Middle East and its decision to break with America in the UN as proof that Australia was shifting away from the US.

“It has finally stepped out of the US shadow to call for a ceasefire and could potentially act as a mediator in the conflict if needed,” the paper said. “That opportunity will be lost if it has a military presence in the region. It is sensible for Australia to continue distancing itself from the US.”

The Australian revealed last week that the US-led Combined Maritime Forces in Bahrain had asked Australia to send a warship to join a new naval task force in the waterway, amid a surge in ­attacks on cargo vessels by Houthi militants.

After initial talks with Australian officials, who expressed reluctance to join the mission, it’s understood the US downgraded its request.

Standing alongside New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon on Wednesday, Mr Albanese said Australia stood with like-minded countries on the need to maintain freedom of navigation through the critical waterway that carries more than 12 per cent of global trade. “We condemn the actions of the Houthi and the disruption that is occurring,” the Prime Minister said. “And we know that the US understands the best way for Australia to support this is through diplomatic support.”

Mr Albanese added that Australia’s naval resources had been prioritised in the Indo-Pacific.

Australia has five personnel stationed at CMF headquarters in Bahrain. Mr Albanese said Australia would consider sending further personnel.

The Prime Minister’s comments came less than a day after he declared in a major speech that Australia was not just an observer in the defence of global freedom, arguing “peace must be built, preserved, defended and upheld”.

Australia expressed its diplomatic support for freedom of navigation in the Red Sea in a 44-nation statement on Wednesday morning. The US, EU and NATO-initiated statement ­denounced Houthi interference with the free movement of ships, and the movement’s “appalling” seizure of the part-Israeli-owned ship, the Galaxy Leader, and its 25-member international crew.

“Such behaviour also threatens the movement of food, fuel, humanitarian assistance, and other essential commodities to destinations and populations all over the world,” the statement said. “The undersigned further encourage all states to refrain from facilitation or encouragement of the Houthis. There is no justification for these attacks, which affect many countries ­beyond the flags these ships sail under.”

The statement followed a teleconference of the 39 member CMF, attended by the Chief of the Defence Force, Angus Campbell. Assistant Defence Minister Matt Thistlethwaite said the government “gained some further ­information” in the meeting about the US request, which the government has always insisted was a general one to all 39 CMF members. It’s understood Mr Thistlethwaite was referring to a negotiated position in which the US would drop its formal request for an Australian warship to participate in the mission.

Senator Birmingham, in a joint statement with defence spokesman Andrew Hastie and Treasury spokesman Angus Taylor, said Mr Albanese’s pledge of diplomatic support for the Red Sea mission was “weak and nonsensical”. “Is Mr Albanese seriously claiming that Australia can exert diplomatic influence over the Houthi rebels?” the ministers said. “Failing to contribute to securing this trade route means Australians will pay the price for the Prime Minister’s lack of leadership, with over 12 per cent of the worlds’ trade coming through the Suez Canal.

“The Coalition demands the Prime Minister immediately explain to Australians the true reasons for his inaction.”

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin this week announced the new 10-member Red Sea task force, Operation ­Prosperity Guardian, which will include ships from the UK, Canada, France, Spain, Italy and the Netherlands.

The move following intensifying drone and missile attacks by Houthi rebels. The attacks have prompted commercial shipping giants to avoid the Suez Canal, which empties into the Red Sea.

The alternative route from Europe to Asia, around the Cape of Good Hope, extends a typical voyage from 31 days to 40 days, adding tens of millions of dollars to shipping costs.