Re: China
Reply #10 –
Some eight weeks ago, then Foreign Minister Payne was hosting a Liberal Party fundraiser while her assistant was in the Solomon Islands trying unsuccessfully to stop the pact with China.
Contrast that with new Foreign Minister Wong’s hands on approach to our South Pacific neighbours and the scuttling of China’s security pact.
In defence of Payne, it seems that she wanted to do more in the South Pacific but was blocked by her colleagues. That said, her authoritarian approach was more likely to put our neighbours offside.
On the big stick side of foreign affairs, the new Government is reportedly considering buying three additional air warfare destroyers and stop-gap submarines; a significant increase in our defensive and force projection capabilities.