Anthony Albanese’s ‘trust’ in China goes up in smoke
Now a Chinese fighter jet has provided a stark reality check for the Prime Minister, ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump, that Beijing cannot be trusted to behave as a law-abiding international citizen.
In an incident that occurred on Sunday but was only revealed late on Monday, a People’s Liberation Army air force Su-35 fighter jet dropped flares dangerously close to an Australian P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft over the South China Sea.
It’s the latest in a series of similar encounters that before long will see someone killed.
The near miss occurred in international airspace, but that doesn’t bother China in the slightest. It claims the entirety of the South China Sea, despite a clear international ruling that its so-called “nine-dash line” claim is unlawful.
China claims its intentions are benign, but it is muscling up to Australia, as it is to Taiwan, The Philippines, Japan and even the US. It has the world’s biggest navy, advanced fighter jets, missiles and drones, and a fleet of coast guard and maritime militia ships that harass all who defy its territorial gaslighting.
Albanese knows all this. That’s why he has stuck with the AUKUS submarine pact, and is working so hard to push back against Chinese influence in the Pacific. But he is so preoccupied with stabilising Australia’s ties with Beijing that he refuses to speak publicly about the security challenge China poses.
Trump is a different story. He’s a compulsive straight talker on China, and is determined to win the strategic contest with Beijing.
He’s also prone to shooting himself in the foot, which he has routinely done in prosecuting his misguided tariffs policy on allies and adversaries alike.
China’s move to restrict rare earth exports and control the supply chain for the specialist minerals was an entirely predictable response to Trump’s trade war. As Trump would say, Beijing holds the cards.
But Albanese also has some aces up his sleeve in the form of Australian critical minerals.
China’s aggression, in the South China Sea and the rare earths market, is well-timed for Australia. It demonstrates Beijing’s claim to be a benign international player to be well out of order.
If Australia and the US can get their act together and take a long-term view, like Beijing does in its five-year plans, they will have a chance to break China’s stranglehold that will otherwise allow it to dominate the technological advances that will define the coming decades.
Trust will be a key ingredient. And while Trump’s erratic nature makes the US appear a less reliable partner for now, it remains a far better option than an openly hostile Beijing.
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When he was in China just a few months ago, Anthony Albanese said he had no reason not to trust Xi Jinping.