SINGAPORE – Australia and China need to find common ground despite their differences, as economic ties between the two are important, said former Australian Prime Minister John Howard.
“The economic relationship between Australia and China is very important, and there is tension in that relationship and we have to take part in it,” Howard said on the sidelines of the Singapore Summit on Wednesday.
Relations between the two countries have been strained since Beijing launched an investigation into imports of some liquor from Australia last month in the wake of a crackdown on imports of other goods.
“I certainly do not think that Australia should in any way be in a position to abandon its relations with China; it is very important to us. Our exports of goods (such as) iron, coal and lime are very important to the Australian economy.” Howard was in 2007.
China Australia is a major trading partner of Australia, buying more of the commodity products manufactured under Asian economic powerhouse Down Under.
The recent low spiral in Sino-Australian-Australian relations was created by Canberra’s demand for an international investigation into the origin of the coronavirus, which was first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan.
Howard did not mention the investigation, but stressed the need for Australia to take a balanced approach to its relations with China – the U.S. – Canberra’s closest ally – and like the tension between China and China.
“I don’t think we should allow ourselves to define who to support between China and the United States. We can have good relations with both countries, even if they are of a different kind,” he said. .
“I see the bilateral relationship between Australia, Australia and China as something in which we have to participate and nurture our own special interests. Always remember, we are part of a group of Western nations that believe in some fundamental values,” Howard added.
Instead, Australia, Australia and China need to get a little consensus despite their different histories and political systems, he said.
“It is very important in these difficult times, especially against the background of the epidemic, to adopt a balanced approach, to try and find areas of common agreement.”
On the issues of surroundings like wine, Howard said, “Let the process go, let’s not overstate some of the differences that are filling the gaps.”
China’s dictatorship a ‘fact of life’
Howard said that even after President Xi Jinping took office, China has taken a more assertive stance at the international level, although its internal political system has not changed much – it is now being enforced more strictly than in the past.
He added that China has been a dictatorial country ruled by the Chinese Communist Party since 1949, and that it is a fact of life, we have to work within it.
“You can’t expect a country that has a fundamentally different political system and agrees to change that system, you have to live with it – of course, not adhering to things that are important to our own values,” he said. .
So instead of straining economic relations between the two countries, Australia needs to work to uphold its core values while safeguarding the mutual benefits of economic relations with China.
“It’s more than just common sense, it’s a matter of long-term prudent policy,” he said.
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