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Herald Sun
16-06-2025
- Business
- Herald Sun
Anthony Albanese murky on Taiwan defence
Don't miss out on the headlines from Breaking News. Followed categories will be added to My News. Anthony Albanese says Australia will 'continue to play an important role in the Pacific' but has stopped short of committing to Taiwan's defence. The US earlier this month warned China was looking to move on the democratically self-governed island by 2027. Aside from torching the decades-long status quo, such a move would deal a major blow to global supply of semiconductors – crucial components in modern tech – and massively disrupt vital trade routes. The Prime Minister was on Monday (AEST) quizzed on how Australia would respond to an escalation in the Indo-Pacific ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump at the G7 summit in Canada this week. Mr Albanese said Australia was committed to 'peace and security in the region'. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia will 'play an important role in the Pacific' but has stopped short of committing to Taiwan's defence. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman 'That's what we want and Australia is a trusted partner to promote peace and security in our region,' he told reporters in Calgary. 'We have been so forever. If you look at the role that Australia has played, we'll continue to play an important role in the Pacific.' Mr Albanese pointed to his stop in Fiji as 'a reminder of the fact that Australia is a trusted partner in the Pacific'. 'What that does is to add to security in our region,' he said. 'That is our job. That is what we do and we all want to see that advanced.' The Trump administration has been calling on Canberra to hike defence spending in response to China – a call the Albanese government has firmly pushed back on. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier this month warned Beijing posed an 'imminent' threat. 'Let me be clear, any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world,' Mr Hegseth told the Shangri La Dialogue. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real and it could be imminent. 'We hope not but certainly could be.' The US has warned China poses an 'imminent' threat to Taiwan. Picture: AFP / Sam Yeh He raised Australia's defence spending in a one-on-one with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles on the sidelines of the conference, saying it 'should' be 3.5 per cent of GDP. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Australia's closest allies, including the UK, have committed to dramatically ramping up defence to at least 3 per cent, making the Albanese government a clear outlier. Mr Marles, who also serves as defence minister, again pushed back against Washington's request on Monday. He insisted Australia has been 'spending more on defence' under Labor. Chinese warships regularly violate Taiwan's maritime borders. Taiwan Defence Ministry / Handout 'We have engaged in the last couple of years in the biggest peacetime increase in defence spending in Australia's history,' Mr Marles told the ABC. 'And that has been a function of the very complex strategic landscape that we face. 'In many ways, the threatening strategic landscape that we face.' He repeated Mr Albanese's lines that Labor would 'assess our strategic landscape, what are our needs, what's our national interest and then resource it'. 'I mean what we inherited obviously was a defence establishment which wasn't in great shape from the Coalition,' Mr Marles said. 'What we've given to it is strategic clarity. 'We have reprioritised tens of billions of dollars of expenditure but what we've also done is increased spending on defence in order to resource our needs, and we'll continue the process of assessing that and where there is a need resourcing it.' Labor has committed tens of billions more to defence since coming to power, but much of the funds are tied up in long-term projects, such as AUKUS. China has built the world's largest combat-ready military under President Xi Jinping. Picture: AFP The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) report warned late last month Australia must boost its immediate readiness to go to war or risk having a 'paper ADF'. ASPI said that while Labor was spending on longer-term projects it was not pumping nearly enough cash into keeping Australia combat-ready in the near term. The report, authored by former Home Affairs deputy secretary Marc Ablong, called for 'defence funding to be increased to reflect the reality of the threats facing Australia'. It said that while the Albanese government 'claims to have made a 'generational investment in Australia's defence', that investment has been put off for another generation', pointing out that the bulk of the billions pledged by Labor would not kick in until after 2029. Originally published as PM murky on Taiwan defence, says Australia committed to 'peace and security' in the Pacific
Perth Now
16-06-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Albo keeps mum on big China question
Anthony Albanese says Australia will 'continue to play an important role in the Pacific' but has stopped short of committing to Taiwan's defence. The US earlier this month warned China was looking to move on the democratically self-governed island by 2027. Aside from torching the decades-long status quo, such a move would deal a major blow to global supply of semiconductors – crucial components in modern tech – and massively disrupt vital trade routes. The Prime Minister was on Monday (AEST) quizzed on how Australia would respond to an escalation in the Indo-Pacific ahead of his meeting with Donald Trump at the G7 summit in Canada this week. Mr Albanese said Australia was committed to 'peace and security in the region'. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia will 'play an important role in the Pacific' but has stopped short of committing to Taiwan's defence. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia 'That's what we want and Australia is a trusted partner to promote peace and security in our region,' he told reporters in Calgary. 'We have been so forever. If you look at the role that Australia has played, we'll continue to play an important role in the Pacific.' Mr Albanese pointed to his stop in Fiji as 'a reminder of the fact that Australia is a trusted partner in the Pacific'. 'What that does is to add to security in our region,' he said. 'That is our job. That is what we do and we all want to see that advanced.' The Trump administration has been calling on Canberra to hike defence spending in response to China – a call the Albanese government has firmly pushed back on. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth earlier this month warned Beijing posed an 'imminent' threat. 'Let me be clear, any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world,' Mr Hegseth told the Shangri La Dialogue. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real and it could be imminent. 'We hope not but certainly could be.' He raised Australia's defence spending in a one-on-one with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles on the sidelines of the conference, saying it 'should' be 3.5 per cent of GDP. In a read out, the US Embassy said the two senior officials 'discussed aligning investment to the security environment in the Indo-Pacific, accelerating US force posture initiatives in Australia, advancing defence industrial base co-operation, and creating supply chain resilience'. 'On defence spending, Secretary Hegseth conveyed that Australia should increase its defence spending to 3.5 per cent of its GDP as soon as possible,' the embassy said. Australia's closest allies, including the UK, have committed to dramatically ramping up defence to at least 3 per cent, making the Albanese government a clear outlier. Mr Marles, who also serves as defence minister, again pushed back against Washington's request on Monday. He insisted Australia has been 'spending more on defence' under Labor. 'We have engaged in the last couple of years in the biggest peacetime increase in defence spending in Australia's history,' Mr Marles told the ABC. 'And that has been a function of the very complex strategic landscape that we face. 'In many ways, the threatening strategic landscape that we face.' He repeated Mr Albanese's lines that Labor would 'assess our strategic landscape, what are our needs, what's our national interest and then resource it'. 'I mean what we inherited obviously was a defence establishment which wasn't in great shape from the Coalition,' Mr Marles said. 'What we've given to it is strategic clarity. 'We have reprioritised tens of billions of dollars of expenditure but what we've also done is increased spending on defence in order to resource our needs, and we'll continue the process of assessing that and where there is a need resourcing it.' Labor has committed tens of billions more to defence since coming to power, but much of the funds are tied up in long-term projects, such as AUKUS. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) report warned late last month Australia must boost its immediate readiness to go to war or risk having a 'paper ADF'. ASPI said that while Labor was spending on longer-term projects it was not pumping nearly enough cash into keeping Australia combat-ready in the near term. The report, authored by former Home Affairs deputy secretary Marc Ablong, called for 'defence funding to be increased to reflect the reality of the threats facing Australia'. It said that while the Albanese government 'claims to have made a 'generational investment in Australia's defence', that investment has been put off for another generation', pointing out that the bulk of the billions pledged by Labor would not kick in until after 2029.
Perth Now
11-06-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
EU warning for Australia on China
China is showing 'worrying signs' of deeper alignment with Russia's anti-West agenda, the EU's top diplomat in Australia has warned. The caution has come as Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin continue to step up co-operation against a backdrop of the raging war in Ukraine and simmering tensions in the Indo-Pacific. Ambassador Gabriele Visentin said on Wednesday what happens in Australia's neck of the woods is 'completely intertwined' with what happens in Europe. Ambassador Gabriele Visentin says China is showing 'worrying signs' of deeper alignment with Russia's anti-West agenda. NewsWire / Martin Ollman Credit: News Corp Australia 'I cannot possibly comment on the choice that the Australian government has on its defence policies,' the EU's envoy told the National Press Club. 'What I can say is that there is … a clear link between the Chinese and the Russian visions of what the new international rules-based order should be. 'We have seen maybe some worrying signs of military scaling up of China.' Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said last week said China's rapidly growing nuclear arsenal is driving 'security anxiety' in Australia. As of mid-2024, China's operational nuclear warheads exceeded 600, according to the US Department of Defence. That was nearly triple what the country was estimated to have in 2020. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth also earlier this month warned of an 'imminent' threat from China, saying Beijing could invade the democratically self-governing island of Taiwan as early as 2027. Such a move would deal a major blow to global supply of semiconductors – crucial components in modern tech – and massively disrupt vital trade routes. 'Let me be clear, any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world,' Mr Hegseth told the Shangri La Dialogue. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real and it could be imminent. 'We hope not but certainly could be.' Mr Hegseth also called on Australia to boost defence spending in a meeting with Mr Marles, who holds the defence portfolio, on the sidelines of the conference. Asked how the EU might intervene in the event of a significant escalation in the Indo-Pacific, Mr Visentin was hesitant to outline any measures but said Europe had a 'vital interest' in keeping the region 'free'. 'I definitely think that the two theatres are completely intertwined,' he said. 'Forty per cent of the global trade towards the EU comes from the Indo-Pacific. 'Therefore, we do have a vital interest that the Indo-Pacific remains free and open. 'It's a matter of our wealth and our prosperity. 'So, of course we have to be aware of what a disruption of the status quo would mean for us as well.' The bloc deployed warships to the Red Sea in early 2024 to protect cargo ships from attacks by Islamist militants in Yemen emboldened by the conflict in Gaza. Mr Visentin also expanded on EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's comments last month saying she wanted a deeper 'strategic partnership' with Australia. 'It's not a military alliance,' he said. 'It's a partnership for co-operation on defence issues, including industrial things.' He added 'there is no scope for an understanding in terms of transfer of troops or mutual help and mutual assistance', unlike NATO, which guarantees blanket mutual defence if a member state is attacked.
NHK
06-06-2025
- Business
- NHK
US ambassador to Japan: Tariff talks won't damage bilateral alliance
US Ambassador to Japan George Glass has stressed that the alliance between Tokyo and Washington is firm and will not be undermined by the tariff negotiations. Glass gave a speech at an event in Tokyo on Friday. Regarding the tariff talks, he said: "I know there are some who would look at our current trade negotiations and see trouble ahead of this great alliance. But nothing could be further from the truth." He noted that the alliance is "greater than any one set of trade talks or defense negotiations." Regarding the increase in China's activities around Taiwan and in the South China Sea, Glass said that "deterring aggression by Communist China is key to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific." The ambassador added, "That's why we need to be vigilant on every front and in every sector." Glass indicated that the US wants Japan to continue to bolster its defense capabilities.
DW
02-06-2025
- Politics
- DW
Where are US and China heading after Shangri-La Dialogue? – DW – 06/02/2025
The cracks between the two superpowers, the US and China, seem to have widened during Asia's premier security forum. But while Washington is warning of the "threat" of China, Beijing is playing it close to the chest. The Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier security forum held annually in Singapore, wrapped up this weekend with a clear message from the United States: the Indo-Pacific is a top priority for the Trump administration amid what it sees as China's aggressive posturing. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth urged Asian allies to step up their own defense in response to China's military build-up near Taiwan, a self-governing island Beijing claims as its own. Hegseth mentioned China more than 20 times in his first-ever speech at Shangri-La, and issued a more direct warning about any plans Beijing may have to take Taiwan. "Any attempt by Communist China to conquer Taiwan by force would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world. There's no reason to sugarcoat it," Hegseth said on Saturday. "The threat China poses is real. And it could be imminent," he said. "We hope not, but it certainly could be." Chinese Rear Admiral Hu Gangfeng, who is leading a delegation from the National Defense University of the People's Liberation Army, called the US remarks "groundless accusations." China's Rear Admiral Hu Gangfeng fired back against the US claims Image: Edgar Su/REUTERS The next day, China's Foreign Ministry also issued a statement to protest against Hegseth's remarks, claiming that the US military presence in Asia-Pacific is "turning the region into a powder keg." China's defense minister stays away The usual plenary session where Beijing used to outline its Indo-Pacific strategy was canceled this year, and speculation over why Beijing chose not to send Defense Minister Dong Jun to Singapore lingered throughout the three-day summit. Zhou Bo, a senior fellow at the Tsinghua University's Center for International Security and Strategy, told DW on site that the minister was absent due to travel schedule arrangements and not for any strategic reason. But other analysts suggested that China may be trying to avoid tough questions on security issues. Another possible factor is that Washington was presenting its Indo-Pacific policy at a global stage for the first time in US President Donald Trump's second term. China threat set to dominate Singapore security talks To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video "It seems to me that China opted for a more cautious and defensive approach this time. It was waiting for the US to make a move," said Lin Ying-Yu, an assistant professor at the Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies at Taiwan's Tamkang University. "Once the US has made its statements, then [China] will respond accordingly," he added. As for clues about Beijing's possible countermeasures, Lin suggested waiting for the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, another international defense conference hosted annually by China in September or October. Lin also warned that "China might use military actions toward Taiwan as a way to send a message to the US, and that's something we should be watching out for." How might US-China relations change going forward? China, which now has the world's largest navy by number of warships, has reportedly stepped up its deployment of naval and coast guard vessels across East Asian waters since early May. Zhou, the Chinese military expert, told DW that the tone Hegseth used to address US-China competition shows an "almost 180 degrees change" compared to the Biden administration and "runs contrary to what his predecessors said." Hegseth issues Taiwan warning to Beijing To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Standing at the same podium last year, the former US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin emphasized that war with China was neither imminent nor unavoidable, stressing the importance of renewed dialogue between the two countries in avoiding miscalculations. When asked at the venue about the future of China-US relations, Da Wei, director of the Center for International Security and Strategy (CISS) at Tsinghua University, said he expects day-to-day defense operations from both sides to "appear more confrontational," but without sudden escalation. France's Macron warns of global divide At the forum, French President Emmanuel Macron called out the apparent growing division between China and the US as the main risk currently facing the world. "The instruction given to all the others: you have to choose your side," Macron said at the opening day. "If we do so, we will kill the global order, and we will destroy methodically all the institutions we created after the Second World War," he added. In response to the concerns of the world splitting into two opposing camps, Zhou told DW: "Clearly we have not reached that level, which is a total hostile relationship between two enemies." "We are still away from that and hope we will always be away from that," he said. Tensions slowly rising around Taiwan While China seemed more cautious in the diplomatic arena, its actions in the Taiwan Strait seem to be growing more aggressive. Since Taiwan's current President William Lai took office over a year ago, the island's official data shows more frequent crossings by Chinese military aircraft over the Taiwan Strait's median line — the unofficial boundary between mainland China and Taiwan, despite Beijing officially considering all of Taiwan as Chinese territory. Taiwan also recorded an increased naval presence around its shores. In Singapore, US Defense Secretary Hegseth warned that China could be ready to invade Taiwan as early as 2027 — a statement that echoes previous assessment by US authorities. China has dismissed the 2027 timeline before but reiterated the goal of reaching reunification with Taiwan, whether by peaceful or non-peaceful means. Taiwan wants its own satellite internet — here's why To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Despite being one of the most contentious flashpoints in the world, Taiwan had little official representation at Asia's premier defense forum, Taiwanese media reported. The name "Taiwan" was also reportedly not shown on the guest list for the only two attendees from the island: I-Chung Lai, the CEO of a government-affiliated think tank, and former Defense Minister Andrew Nien-dzu Yang. Edited by: Darko Janjevic
