Australia’s deputy prime minister, Richard Marles, has had a “frank” hour-long discussion with China’s defence minister in Singapore, marking the highest level in-person contact between the countries in almost three years.
Marles, also the defence minister, said he raised the controversial interception of an Australian aircraft by a Chinese jet last month and broader issues in the Pacific with China’s minister of national defence, Wei Fenghe, during a meeting on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue ministerial conference in Singapore.
The event is notable because China has not allowed phone calls or meetings between Australian ministers and their direct counterparts since early 2020. Chinese officials have repeatedly argued Canberra must provide a “better mood” as a precondition for high-level dialogue resuming.
On Sunday afternoon, Marles said he had met Wei, for what he called an “important meeting, one which the Australian government welcomes”.
“It was an opportunity to have a very frank and full exchange, in which I raised a number of issues of concern to Australia,” he told a press conference in Singapore.
“Including the incident involving Australia’s P-8 aircraft on the 26th of May and Australia’s abiding interest in the Pacific and our concern to ensure that the countries of the Pacific are not put in a position of increased militarisation.”
Marles earlier sat near, and shook hands with, China’s defence minister as they participated in broader ministerial talks in Singapore.
Marles was among 27 visiting ministers to attend a “roundtable discussion” at lunchtime on Saturday, immediately after he delivered a speech calling on China to be transparent about its military buildup and criticising its actions in the South China Sea.
Photos from the event show Marles seated next to Singapore’s defence minister, Ng Eng Hen, who was directly across from Wei.
Later, Marles said the meeting with Wei was “a critical first step”.
“As [United States Defence] Secretary [Lloyd] Austin observed after his own meeting with Defence Minister Wei, it is really important in these times to have open lines of dialogue,” he said.
“Australia and China’s relationship is complex, and it’s precisely because of this complexity that it is really important that we are engaging in dialogue right now.”
Marles said the meeting, lasting more than an hour, was “hosted by China” and was organised after the two ministers were seated together at a dinner on Friday night, but declined to provide any further details of what they discussed in the meeting.
“We want to take this in a very sober and deliberate manner. We don’t underestimate the difficulties we’ve had in our bilateral relationship,” Marles said.
“The fact this is the first meeting at a ministerial level in almost three years is very significant. We will take this in a step-by-step process.”
However, he also stressed the new Labor government was focused on Australia’s national interests, and would not “waver from asserting those in the strongest possible terms”. Marles also noted the importance of the international rules-based order, making specific note of freedom of navigation exercises in the South China Sea and opposing militarisation of the Pacific.
#HappeningNow: Ministerial Roundtable hosted by Minister for Defence Dr @Ng_Eng_Hen. #SLD22 @RichardMarlesMP #WeiFenghe @ISeruiratu @KishiNobuo @DefensieMin @del_lorenzana @SecDef pic.twitter.com/acg8Nl81GE
— Ministry of Defence (@mindefsg) June 11, 2022
A statement issued by Singapore’s defence ministry said the ministerial roundtable meeting had discussed the implications of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while “several ministers exchanged their views on how the situation would affect the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and the world”.
Marles said before travelling to Singapore that he was not seeking a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart, meaning one-on-one talks.
But it appears the Shangri-La Dialogue – an annual defence and strategic conference that draws ministers from dozens of countries – provided several opportunities for conversations in wider groups.
Marles was also seated opposite Wei on Friday night during the opening of the conference, sharing a table with nine international dignitaries including Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida; Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong; the US defence secretary, Lloyd Austin; and China’s Wei.
Saturday’s ministerial roundtable was held shortly after Marles delivered a speech in which he said China was militarising features in the South China Sea “to deny the legitimacy of its neighbours’ claims in this vital international waterway through force”.
Marles said Australia did not question the right of any country to modernise its military capabilities, but large-scale military buildups “must be transparent and they must be accompanied by statecraft that reassures” to avoid fuelling an arms race.
In his speech, Marles said China’s failure to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in violation of the UN charter “should give us cause for concern, especially given the investments it is making in military power”.
Marles said there would be continuity in Australian defence policy despite the change of government, including support for the US alliance, implementing Aukus and keeping defence spending above 2% of GDP.
But he also foreshadowed “a change in Australia’s tone”. He said while Australia would “always be forthright in articulating our national interest and in advocating for our region’s security”, the Albanese government “will be respectful, including with countries where we have complex relationships”.
Marles said Australia valued a productive relationship with China.
He said Australia’s approach would be anchored in a resolve to safeguard its national interest and support regional security and stability, while “looking for avenues of cooperation where they exist”.
Shortly after the 21 May election, China’s premier, Li Keqiang, sent a congratulatory message to the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, saying Beijing was “ready to work with the Australian side to review the past, look into the future, and uphold the principle of mutual respect and mutual benefit”.
But so far, the Albanese government has reiterated the view that China had changed, not Australia. It has urged Beijing to put substance behind its overtures for dialogue by removing trade sanctions against Australian export sectors such as barley and wine.
Last week, Albanese denounced an incident in which a Chinese fighter plane forced an Australian maritime surveillance aircraft into a dangerous manoeuvre in the South China Sea region as “an act of aggression”.
He said the incident occurred in international airspace, while Marles said the Chinese J-16 aircraft had cut across the nose of the Royal Australian Air Force plane on 26 May and released “a bundle of chaff which contains small pieces of aluminium, some of which were ingested into the engine of the P-8 aircraft”.
But the Chinese ministry of national defense said the Australian aircraft had “entered the airspace near China’s Xisha Islands” – a disputed area also known as the Paracel Islands – and “seriously threatened China’s sovereignty and security”.
Australia, the US and Japan issued a joint statement on Saturday saying they “strongly object to China’s unlawful maritime claims and activities in the South China Sea that are inconsistent with international law”.
That followed a trilateral defence meeting among Marles, Austin and Japan’s defence minister, Nobuo Kishi, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, where they vowed to “increase and strengthen trilateral exercises”.
They also pledged to “explore and pursue trilateral cooperation on advanced technologies and strategic capabilities” among Australia, the US and Japan. That appears to be an extension of the type of advanced technology work that is also being done with the UK under Aukus.
