As always when I’m in Canberra, I called my kids last night. Our youngest, just turned 12, asked what I would be doing over the next day.
I mentioned that I would be speaking to an important group about Australia’s relations with China. She said, “will you be talking about how we like China, dislike China, or want to collaborate with China?”
I assured her it was the latter. Collaboration. Praised her for her vocabulary, and wondered if with questions like that, a career in journalism might await!
Too much China discussion here in Australia, and throughout much of the world, is binary, like the first two options my daughter gave me.
Like, dislike. Love, hate. Good, bad. Growth, stagnation. Peace, war. Engage, decouple.
The truth is much more sophisticated and complicated. It requires honesty and analysis; resolve and nuance.
The world my daughters are growing up in is profoundly different to the one that I or most of us grew up in.
My childhood saw the last of the Cold War, and the beginnings of Deng Xiaoping’s reform and opening up.
My adolescence saw the collapse of the Berlin Wall, and the Tiananmen Square massacre.
My early professional years were jolted by September 11 and the rise of terrorism, but also bore witness to the economic miracle that Deng’s new direction ultimately delivered, lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty.
Throughout it all, the great power of the United States stood tall in an international system that had been built from the ashes of World War II.
Now, we have entered into the new era of strategic competition, accompanied by disruption that is challenging the fundamentals of that international system.
In this new era, the US remains a great power, and will continue to be so.
China too is a great power, and will continue to be so.
Scholars and experts increasingly debate whether we are entering an era of multipolarity.
That’s not to say that third or fourth powers have reached the scale of influence of the US, or of China.
But from India to Japan, the EU to the Middle East or Africa, and through many other regions or nations, their scope of influence matters and, in some cases, will increasingly matter.
In our own region, the influence of large and growing ASEAN economies are crucial to the pursuit of both regional prosperity and regional stability.
While not a great power ourselves, Australia’s influence matters too.
In this changed and contested world, Australia must collaborate actively and thoughtfully with traditional powers and partners, along with new or emerging powers and partners.
We must always do so true to our values, principles and interests.
We must do so confident in our abilities and resilience.
Recently, Australia faced an unwarranted attempt at economic coercion.
As a country, in the face of unacceptable demands, Australia did not compromise on policies or interests, but demonstrated resolve and our businesses pursued diversification.
With the removal of most of the coercive trade sanctions against us, Australia should celebrate the resilience of our economy, industries, businesses, and people.
We were not bowed and we should be proud of that.
Their strength should give us all the resolve to stand by our values and national interest at all times.
Our approach to international relations should be principled and predictable.
Whether it is on questions of global or regional security, free trade, human rights, or shared challenges like climate change, other nations should know what Australia stands for and be unsurprised when Australia expresses our position.
Friends, of great powers, much should be expected.
When Australia engages with those great powers, they should be in no doubt about what we believe and what we would encourage of them.
With China, we seek stable relations, with positive engagement in areas of collaboration.
The trade between our nations is mutually beneficial to each and, in strengthening both of our economies, it is good for our region and the world.
It was harmful to some in each of our countries for China to choose to interrupt that trade in breach of undertakings we had made to one another, including undertakings through CHAFTA, which was delivered by the Coalition in 2015, and undertakings through RCEP, which was delivered by the Coalition in 2020.
We welcome the restoration of trade consistent with these agreements and the Coalition would wish to see that trade relationship grow further.
Given China’s standing as a great power in our region and the world, it is also natural that we would also have expectations of how China would ideally conduct itself in matters that impact our region and the broader world.
We encourage respect for the international rules and laws that underpin peace and stability.
Ideally, China would respect international rulings on maritime boundaries and its forces would not engage in acts of aggression or actions that risk miscalculation.
Ideally, China would use its influence and relations with countries like Russia, Iran and North Korea to stem the flow of weapons and funds used against Ukraine, not enable it.
Australia’s position on issues like these, which impact upon peace and security – along with the sovereignty of nations smaller than ourselves – should be of no surprise.
We must have the confidence to express these positions, along with the wisdom to do so appropriately.
As China continues its growth, including the rapid growth of its nuclear armed military capabilities, it becomes more important than ever that this great power act with great responsibility.
Over the last year, we have welcomed China’s foreign minister Wang Yi and then premier Li Qiang to Australia.
The Coalition has been pleased to have private meetings with both, and we thank China’s representatives for this courtesy.
They have been both friendly and frank exchanges, addressing topics of shared ambition, along with matters of great concern.
We welcome China’s decision to have restored ministerial level dialogue and its engagement with our democratic system. It was counterproductive of them to have chosen to cease it.
We would wish to see that dialogue continue, consistent with the undertakings made in our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, signed by the previous Coalition Government with China in 2014.
The ambitions of the CSP should lay the basis for our cooperation in many fields beyond the strength of our trading relationship.
Stemming the flow of drugs across our region, cooperatively tackling regional health threats, working together to address the challenges of climate change are just some of the areas where we can do more together.
Governments will have differences. Indeed, it is our responsibility to differ when we identify threats to our national interest.
Yet in how we differ, we should also take inspiration from how our businesses and peoples manage their differences.
Through difficult times in our trade relations, Australian and Chinese businesses maintained relations so that, for example, China’s breweries could quickly welcome back the best malting barley in the world.
As it has for more than 50 years, the approach of the Australia China Business Council set an example of positive collaboration, which was epitomised by the brilliant networking on display last night.
Sometimes, our people show up even the brilliant relations delivered by the likes of the ACBC.
One of my favourite moments from the recent Paris Olympics were the scenes at the medal presentation for the women’s 3m springboard.
Australia’s Maddison Keeney had won silver, with gold won by China’s Chen Yiwen, and bronze by China’s Chang Yani.
Rarely have I seen such beautiful images of unadulterated joy, enthusiasm and genuine respect between competitors.
I even shared one of the many pictures of the three of them, happily hamming it up for the cameras, with Minister Wong!
They played by the rules, lived up to the Olympic spirit, and showed the best of both China and Australia.
Friends, let their example be an inspiration to us all.