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– We know what it’s like to be bullied. Therefore, we must be in solidarity the next time we go to Vinmonopolet, says the former Liberal leader.
Trine Skei Grande (V) is part of the leadership group of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC). Now the group is reacting to how China treats Australia. Photo: Twitter screenshot
– After a hard day at work, nothing better than a glass of New Zealand pinot!
With a twinkle in her eye and a bottle of wine in hand, New Zealand Member of Parliament Louisa Wall is the first to speak.
It is quickly followed by elected politicians from Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the United States, Japan, the European Parliament, Sweden and Denmark.
And Norway.
– Who needs wine when you have aquavit? asks Trine Skei Grande while holding a bottle of Norwegian liquor.
The video with the former Liberal leader and the Minister of Education and the rest of the politicians has a clear message with the video: Buy Australian wine.
Why? Because Australia is currently under tremendous pressure from China. Among other things, the Chinese authorities have introduced a hefty punitive tariff (up to 212 percent) on Australian wine.
Solidarity with Australia
That is why the Inter-Parliamentary Group on China (IPAC), in which Grande and Michael Tetzschner (H) are part of the leadership group, has decided to give their statement of support to their Australian allies. And that statement of support came in the form of a video that was posted on Twitter Tuesday morning.
– It was Fredrik Malm in Sweden who came up with the idea and who wrote the script. I have a formidable collection of aquavit and I was very pleased to be assigned the line I got, says Grande laughing to Aftenposten.
She emphasizes that the humorous video is meant to convey a serious message.
– We see that Australia is under strong pressure from China. We know in Norway what it’s like to be harassed by a large country in this way, Grande says.
A man looks at Australian wine during a trade fair in Shanghai in early November. China has now imposed punitive tariffs of up to 212 percent on Australian wine. Photo: Mark Schiefelbein, AP / NTB
Norway was punished for six years
In 2010, Norway was severely punished by China after democracy activist Liu Xiaobo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. It wasn’t until December 2016, after Norway signed a statement promising not to do anything that could damage relations with China again, that the Beijing authorities mollified.
For the past year, Australia, Canada and Sweden have been among those who have noticed China’s anger. The United States and China are in the middle of an ongoing and growing conflict. And the Chinese attacks on Australia have gotten a lot tougher of late.
In early November, Beijing presented a 14-point list of criticism of the Australian government.
– China is angry. If you make China your enemy, China will be your enemy, a Chinese official told Australian media, according to the Sydey Morning Herald newspaper.
Prime Minister demands an apology from China
Several of the 14 points are very vague, and the Chinese authorities complain that Australia treats them badly.
Much of the outrage is believed to be due to the coronary pandemic, which was first discovered in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019. This spring, Australia took the initiative to conduct an international investigation into the origins of the virus. It provoked angry reactions in Beijing.
This week, the situation got even worse. On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian posted a fake photo on Twitter that struck like a bomb in Australia.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian received strong criticism after a Twitter message he posted on Monday. Photo: Liu Zheng, AP / NTB
The photo shows a smiling Australian soldier holding a bloody knife to the throat of an Afghan boy. In the report, Zhao refers to a recent Australian report that reveals that special forces had killed 39 Afghan prisoners and civilians.
The Twitter message prompted Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to demand an apology from China. Zhao responded by “attaching” the tweet so that it always appears at the top when someone enters his Twitter page.
also read
The Prime Minister demands that China apologize for the fictitious image. – Disgusting.
– The pandemic facilitates the response
Strong Chinese pressure on Australia will no doubt be noticed in the United States by incoming President Joe Biden. He has already announced a hard line against China. Probably, to a much greater extent than its predecessor, it will also focus on cooperation with like-minded countries.
This is something Trine Skei Grande is looking forward to.
– It is absolutely crucial that democratic countries stick together in situations like this. Now we hope we have a United States more concerned with playing in teams. Democracies must show the power found in this form of government. Among other things, we can do this using our freedom of expression, says the liberal politician.
He adds that the wine video is in many ways the result of the corona pandemic.
– It is the result of the fact that we have become much more used to video meetings. And that in itself is good. The threshold for a quick meeting has gotten much lower when they can talk to each other while sitting on the train or in the home office. It makes it easy for us to form an alliance like this, Grande says.
And then it is also easier to propose a common message of solidarity:
– If you’re buying wine in December, you should bring a couple of bottles from Australia, says Trine Skei Grande.
