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Opinion | Australia’s belt and road dilemma in the Pacific: is China a partner or competitor?
- Canberra has expressed a willingness to work with Beijing on much needed infrastructure in the region
- However, concerns abound, ranging from standards to security threats, which have made the country hesitant to dive in
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A fraught debate in Australia surrounds the country’s response to the Belt and Road Initiative. Some suggest Canberra wishes to stand apart from Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ambitious global trade strategy, but the reality is more complicated. Australia can actually point to a long and consistent position that has emphasised a willingness to engage.
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Since May 2017 Australian leaders have publicly offered support for efforts to improve infrastructure and other development opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region, and have said Beijing and Canberra should explore the possibility of collaborating.
In November last year incoming Prime Minister Scott Morrison told China’s Caixin magazine that his country was “keen to strengthen engagement with China in regional trade and infrastructure developments that align with international standards of governance and transparency”.
Yet this positivity has come with limits and some apparent contradictions.
Australia has resisted signing a memorandum of understanding with Beijing on the belt and road, stating it preferred not to engage in generalities. But there was little hesitation in signing one with the United States to “support infrastructure investment” in the Indo-Pacific region. The US document contained no specifics, no projects and no investments.
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