Manila, Philippines: Australia will ramp up its investment in drones and other defence measures in a pact with the Philippines to protect important trade routes and increase maritime surveillance as Beijing extends its reach over the South China Sea.
The new pact was inked as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and other world leaders arrived in Manila for this week’s ASEAN summit, where middle powers will seek to form strong positions on energy security and global volatility before heads of three of the world’s most powerful countries come together on the sidelines of APEC in China.
Albanese signalled he would focus on de-escalating conflicts, including in his private meetings with US President Donald Trump, as the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East continue to drive inflation worldwide.
“That’s something that’s impacting everyone who will be at the ASEAN summit tomorrow,” he said. “We’ll be discussing how we can work together to mitigate the impacts of the war, but also we want to see a de-escalation. And the coming days will be really important [to that].”
Albanese endorsed a historic meeting due later this week between Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We think that dialogue is a good thing, and we await the outcome of that dialogue. It’s obviously quite significant,” he said.
As part of his visit to the Philippines, Albanese stopped for lunch at the country’s Jollibee’s franchise for some gastronomic diplomacy. The globally successful chain, famous for its fried chicken and gravy, spaghetti and hot dogs, plans to invest $60 million opening 35 outlets in Australia during the next five years.
During a press conference with travelling Australian media earlier in the day, Albanese apologised for a crude joke he shared with Environment Minister Chris Bowen, which was captured on tape during the UN’s COP 31 climate conference in Turkey.
Albanese will meet Trump and Xi as he attends ASEAN, APEC and a Quad meeting this week. While he does not expect a meeting with Putin, the prime minister said he would be forthright if they had their first encounter.
“If he’s in a room where I am, I’m sure they will hear my contribution during the ASEAN summit … This is an illegal and an immoral invasion. This is a bigger country being a bully, in contravention of international law,” he said.
Albanese did not rule out appearing in an APEC leaders’ photo with Putin, if that was the wish of China as the host country. “But we will make very clear our views about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” he said.
The prime minister also held a meeting with Vietnam’s Prime Minister Lê Minh Hung on Sunday, at which he said he would raise the case of detained Australian man Hiep Tran, and is due to meet Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr on Monday.
The meeting with Marcos follows Sunday’s signing of a new defence agreement that includes intelligence sharing, coastguard operations and joint training exercises with the Philippines. Australia will also make additional investments in maritime surveillance capabilities, including drone technology.
“These activities will contribute to making our region more safe, more secure, and more prosperous,” Albanese said.
The Philippines is on the front line of territorial disputes over the South China Sea, which is a key global trade route. China claims almost the entire waterway as its territory despite overlapping claims by other countries, and has built artificial islands in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.
Hunter Marston, the South-East Asia program director at the Lowy Institute, said Australia and the Philippines already had fairly robust defence ties, with Australia boosting its activities as the United States scaled down some of its military exercises in the region.
“In the last year, Australia has been providing more underwater and surface vessel unmanned aquatic vehicles to enhance Philippines coastguard abilities,” he said. “This agreement locks into place that already strong security co-operation, and provides some more institutional architecture for it.”
The move will bolster support for the Philippines in contested waters where clashes are common between coastguards, and both China and the Philippines have accused each other of provoking tensions.
In July Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong warned Beijing against destabilising conduct in the region, earning a rebuke from China’s ministry of foreign affairs, which demanded Australia stop “exaggerating tensions and inciting confrontation”.
Marston said Australia’s attempts to stabilise China ties in recent years had been largely successful, stopping the relationship from erupting as it did around the COVID-19 inquiry five years ago.
“That doesn’t mean there’s not tension,” he said. “Australia’s more active security role in South-East Asia certainly will rattle China to some degree, although it’s not to the nature or level that US has, so it’s not as acute a point of friction as US presence in the region.”
Asked whether Sunday’s announcement was sending a message to China, Albanese said it “isn’t aimed at any one country”.
“This is about supporting sovereignty of every country … [International law of the sea] is really important, freedom of navigation. The majority of our trade goes through the South China Sea. That is important,” he said. “One of the reasons why Australia has to engage internationally is that one in four Australian jobs depend upon our trade.”
Asked whether he would raise the Philippines agreement and China’s behaviour in the South China Sea when he meets Xi and Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the end of the week, Albanese said he would “engage diplomatically”.
South-East Asian countries had planned to finalise a long-negotiated code of conduct on the South China Sea at this month’s ASEAN summit, but the process has stalled.
“The sticking point is the question of whether the code of conduct will be legally binding – that seems to be the fine print that Beijing will not back down on,” Marston said.
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Natassia Chrysanthos is Federal Political Correspondent. She has previously reported on immigration, health, social issues and the NDIS from Parliament House in Canberra.Connect via X or email.From our partners
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: www.smh.com.au
