[New post] The coming Khaki election: will Labor join in the belligerence against China?
Christina Macpherson posted: " For the Australian Coalition government, with an election coming in less than four months, this is convenient. Dutton and Prime Minister Scott Morrison are happy to harness Wu's carefully crafted rhetoric to turn the threat from China into the nation"
For the Australian Coalition government, with an election coming in less than four months, this is convenient.
Dutton and Prime Minister Scott Morrison are happy to harness Wu's carefully crafted rhetoric to turn the threat from China into the national security issue of the election.
The three reasons Taiwan keeps talking up the threat of war with China, The Age, By Eryk Bagshaw, January 31, 2022 — Singapore: There was alarm last year when Defence Minister Peter Dutton warned that China's push to take over Taiwan was gathering pace. It was time to have an honest conversation about the threat of war, he said, because once Taiwan was taken, the Japanese Senkaku islands were next - and then every major Australian city was "within range of China's missiles".The threat to Taiwan has not dissipated in the new year.........
Peter Dutton also vowed to continue to speak out against China's "belligerent approach" just hours after the new Chinese ambassador arrived in Australia with a conciliatory message about getting the troubled relationship "back to theright track".
Taiwan's Foreign Minister Joseph Wu is determined to keep international leaders talking about Taiwan's situation should war come to pass.
There are three key reasons for this.
The first objective is domestic. "Taiwanese society understands that if the government is doing something right, they will continue to support the government," Wu told me in an interview from Taipei........
The strategy has netted Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party results, including a landslide presidential victory for Tsai Ing-wen in 2020.
The second objective is to maintain resolve...........
That means every rhetorical threat from Beijing is met with a response from Taipei. This cacophony can sound like warmongering but is more bombastic than about readying for boots on the ground.
The third objective is about building alliances and ensuring Taiwan becomes a global symbol of liberal democracy worth fighting for..............
Taipei watched on with concern as the United States and its allies pulled out of Afghanistan......
This is why you will hear more like this from Wu throughout 2022.......
''Wu must frame the threat of war as omnipresent even if it is not imminent.''
For the Australian Coalition government, with an election coming in less than four months, this is convenient.
Dutton and Prime Minister Scott Morrison are happy to harness Wu's carefully crafted rhetoric to turn the threat from China into the national security issue of the election.
Labor's attempts to follow the international relations playbook will become more challenging as polling day draws near.
On Monday, Labor leader Anthony Albanese was asked on 3AW radio whether he would "unequivocally" support Taiwan in a military conflict and take a stand against "concentration camps" in Xinjiang.
"Where do you stand?" Neil Mitchell asked Albanese on Monday after days of government ministers accusing Albanese of softening Labor's stance on China.
"What the international community has consistently said is that Taiwan's position needs to be respected," said Albanese.
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