Chinanews, May 6th, a comprehensive report, following the "Belt and Road" cooperation agreement in Victoria, Australia, the strategic cooperation agreement signed between Western Australia and China has also been "watched" recently.
The Australian Federal Government has been exposed to calls for the cancellation of this agreement.
From expressing positions on Hong Kong-related issues and trying to intervene in the "Taiwan Strait situation", to the recent "tear-up" of the China agreement, a series of wrongdoings by the Australian Federal Government have caused opposition and concerns from many parties, and it is also causing an irreparable blow to itself.
The data picture shows Australian Prime Minister Morrison.
I want to break the contract again: Western Australia's China-China Agreement is "targeted"
The British "Guardian" reported on May 5 that the Western Australian government had signed a cooperation agreement with China in 2011, promising to jointly seek investment opportunities, including infrastructure and Western Australia's important resource industries.
Recently, the Australian Federal Government has faced calls for the cancellation of this agreement.
Australian Labour Party MP Kimberley Kitching claimed that the Australian government has a responsibility to tell the public whether the agreement is in Australia’s “best interests”.
Two Liberal backbenchers, Concetta fierravantiwell and Tim Wilson, also "jumped" and said that the agreement signed between Western Australia and China should be cancelled, "just like Victoria's." The "Belt and Road" agreement is the same."
In this regard, the "Guardian" stated that the Australian Federal Government refused to comment on the relevant news, while Western Australia stated that it had not received any doubts from the Federal Government about the agreement.
Data map: Melbourne, Australia, a tram driving along an empty city road.
"Self-destructive" behavior: The Australian Federal Government frequently trips up its own family
The British "Guardian" pointed out that if the Australian Federal Government cancels Western Australia's China agreement, it may cause tensions with Western Australian Labour Party Governor Mark McGowan (Mark McGowan).
McGowan has always emphasized the importance of trade between Western Australia and China, and was re-elected in the Western Australian elections in 2021.
A spokesperson for the Western Australian Government also said: "China is Western Australia's largest export market. In 2020, China will account for 56% of Western Australia's merchandise exports."
Regardless of local development interests, does the Australian Federal Government have to “stump” its family members?
It is worth noting that Australia, as a federal country, the state and territory governments are responsible for the economic development of the state, and the federal government is responsible for foreign affairs and defense.
It is precisely because of this that how to get along with China is the best way to develop oneself. The Australian federal government and local governments seem to have difficulty coordinating.
Earlier, after the Australian Foreign Minister "tore up" the "Belt and Road" agreement signed between Victoria and China on the grounds of national security, the operation of the Australian Federal Government was opposed by many within its country.
Governor Andrews of Australia and Victoria believes that the “Belt and Road Initiative” could have brought abundant opportunities and considerable benefits to Australia.
At the time when he joined the “One Belt One Road” initiative, Andrews also stated in a statement: “We do not regard China as a customer, but as a good friend of ours.”
Regarding the federal government's approach, many people in the Australian business and academic circles also said that this will have a negative impact on China-Australia relations and cooperation.
"Fatal blow": Aussie falls, scholars worry, these industries suffer
Recently, in addition to the aforementioned two agreements with China, the Australian Federal Government has also tried to "point fingers" on other China-related issues.
The most recent is the Darwin Port Agreement.
Darwin, where the port is located, is the capital of the Northern Territory.
At the end of 2015, Chinese companies signed a 99-year lease agreement with the Northern Territory government.
The mayor of Darwin also made it clear that he looked forward to the development opportunities of the “Belt and Road” initiative.
However, recently, Australian Defender Dutton responded to a reporter’s question, “After terminating the “Belt and Road” cooperation agreement between Victoria and China, why don’t you do anything about the Darwin Port Agreement signed in 2015?” In fact, Thousands of similar agreements in the country need to be reviewed, and Australian Foreign Minister Payne is working on it.
If these agreements are not in Australia's interests, Payne will act in the first place.
In this regard, many Australian media interpreted that the next goal of the Australian government is the lease of Chinese companies in Darwin Port.
Second, Australia's hype intervention in the "Taiwan Strait situation."
Australian Defence Dutton previously declared openly that the "Taiwan Strait situation" should not be underestimated and that Australia will "work hard to maintain peace" together with "allies" in the region.
Not only that, Australian media quoted an anonymous Australian military official as saying that in response to the "probable war" in the Taiwan Strait, the Australian government may dispatch military forces to cooperate with the US operations.
Coupled with the previous statements of the "Five Eyes Alliance" and Hong Kong-related Xinjiang issues, the Australian government seems to intend to go to the end on the wrong path.
And its unreasonable behavior is causing a huge blow to itself.
In the past year, Australia’s tense relations with China have caused the country’s lobster, red wine, and barley industries to be hit by China’s trade sanctions, and many exporters’ livelihoods are "hanging a thread."
On May 6, the Chinese side announced that after the indefinite suspension of all activities under the China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue mechanism with immediate effect, the Australian dollar exchange rate has fallen even more.
Sean Callow, a strategist at Westpac Bank in Sydney, said, “Any official announcement by China to further restrict economic cooperation between China and Australia will have a negative impact on Australia’s export prospects and the Australian dollar.
Professor Caitlyn Byrne of the Australian Institute of Asian Studies said that China’s statement is a sign of further deterioration in Sino-Australian relations.
She said: "This is not good news. This is obviously a very obvious diplomatic signal. China has expressed its dissatisfaction with Australia. This is particularly related to the Victorian agreement."
The Australian "Financial Review" quoted a lawyer advising Chinese companies on investment in Australia as saying, "The faucet has not only been turned off, but also completely removed." The Australian federal government's actions to undermine the cooperation between the two sides may be harmful to China. Investing in Australia caused a fatal blow.
Wang Wenbin, spokesman of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Chinese response: Australia must bear all responsibilities
On May 6, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a regular press conference of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that for a period of time, Australia has abused the so-called “national security” grounds to deal with China-Australia economy and trade in spite of China’s solemn position and repeated representations. The cooperation projects in the fields of China, humanities, and other fields and existing results have been intensified to restrict and suppress, which seriously damages the mutual trust between China and Australia and undermines the foundation of normal exchanges and cooperation. The Chinese side has to make necessary and legitimate responses, and Australia must bear all of this. responsibility.
Wang Wenbin said that China has always believed that a healthy and stable China-Australia relationship is in the fundamental interests of the two countries, and China-Australia cooperation is essentially mutually beneficial and win-win.
At the same time, mutual respect and good mutual trust are the prerequisites for dialogue and pragmatic cooperation between countries.
"We urge Australia to abandon the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice, take a truly objective view of China's development and China-Australia cooperation, immediately return to rationality, correct mistakes, change course, stop frantically suppressing China-Australia cooperation, and stop politicizing normal exchanges between countries. , Stigmatization, don't go further and further down the wrong path." Wang Wenbin pointed out.