Category: China-Australia Relations

Shangri-La Should Not Be a Mere Talkfest on the CCP Threat

Commentary I was reminded that Shangri-La is a fictional utopian paradise valley in Tibet as I read the remarks of the Chinese defence minister to the Singaporean security conference held in the hotel named after the mythical land. In his speech on “China’s New Security Initiative,” Li Shangfu emphasised “a new path to security featuring…


Japan, Australia, US to Fund Undersea Cable Connection in Micronesia to Counter China’s Influence

TOKYO—Japan announced Tuesday that it joined the United States and Australia in signing an agreement on a $95 million undersea cable project that will connect East Micronesia island nations to improve networks in the Indo-Pacific region where China is increasingly expanding its influence. The approximately 2,250-kilometer (1,400-mile) undersea cable will connect the state of Kosrae…


To Counter CCP, AUKUS Need to Deepen Cooperation in Key Defense Technologies

AUKUS, the trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, needs to accelerate and deepen cooperation on key defence technologies, including hypersonics, electronic warfare, and undersea capabilities, in order to effectively counter the Chinese Communist Party (CCP),  a think tank report shows. The collective strength of the AUKUS countries has turned…


Beijing Fails to Block Tibetan Leader Speaking at Australia’s National Press Club

Trying in vain to block a scheduled speech in Canberra by the leader of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, Beijing is accused of undermining freedom of expression in Australia. At the invitation of the National Press Club, Penpa Tsering, the president of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, will deliver a speech titled “Resolving Sino-Tibet conflict and securing peace in…


Media Barred From Australian Premier’s Address to Chinese Dinner

Victorian state leader Daniel Andrews will not release speech notes from an address he delivered to Chinese dignitaries at Melbourne’s Park Hyatt on June 6. The Labor premier’s decision comes after a reporter from the Herald Sun newspaper was barred from entering the Post-Pandemic China-Australia Economic Cooperation Forum, where Andrews spoke for 30 minutes. There…


Revealed: TikTok Code Worked on From China

Software developers based in China are writing the code for TikTok, triggering concerns that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) can access the data of more than one billion users worldwide, as well as force staff to silence dissenting voices, elevate pro-communist narratives, and sow seeds of division in democracies. A code sample seen by the…


More Australian Fruit Added to China’s Import List, With Citrus Industry Welcoming the Change

More Australian fruit is expected to enter the Chinese market after Beijing updated the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC) lists for the first time since 2020, allowing more stone fruit, mangoes, cherries and citrus to reach Chinese consumers. This comes after representatives from Australia’s Department of Agriculture and China’s…


Dissidents Change Tack, Call on People of Justice to Overthrow the CCP

Dissidents gathering to remember the 34th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre and the fourth anniversary of Hong Kongers’ resistance have called on the forces of justice, both inside and outside China, to overthrow the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) dictatorship. This is a step away from their previous rallies, which called on the CCP itself to…


Pentagon Snubbed, China’s Defense Minister Meets With Australian Counterpart

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles met his Chinese counterpart, Li Shangfu, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore after Li refused to meet U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. Marles confirmed the meeting on Twitter, calling the meeting another “important step” towards stablising the relationship between the two countries. In a speech to…


Harmful to Assume War Is Inevitable: Aussie PM

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has warned that assuming that “war is inevitable” is just as harmful as the idea that “conflict is impossible” amid tensions in the Indo-Pacific. “We sometimes hear our region described as a potential ‘theatre’ for conflict,” Albanese said during a major foreign policy speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore…