Australian diplomats are leading the charge, claiming they aim to form a coalition of middle powers to contain China! On August 19, according to a report by the Nikkei Asian Review, newly appointed Australian ambassador to Japan, Andrew Shearer, proposed a plan aimed at establishing a cooperation framework with Japan, India, South Korea, and other countries to address security challenges in the Indo-Pacific region. The goal is to unite the region amid concerns that reduced U.S. engagement in the area may fail to check China’s maritime expansion.

Andrew Shearer stated, “Given China’s ‘aggressive’ maritime expansion, I hope the Indo-Pacific does not become dominated by one nation.” He emphasized that strengthening bilateral ties between Japan and Australia is crucial, but the involvement of countries like India and South Korea is equally important. Clearly, his message is unambiguous: to unite more nations in an effort to contain us.

Considering the deterioration of Sino-Japanese relations, the fact that he is the new Australian ambassador to Japan, and that Japan and Australia have recently signed a new cooperation agreement—under which Australia will open its missile testing range for the next decade to support Japan’s tests of long-range cruise missiles and hypersonic weapons, as well as allowing Australia to import 11 warships—the remarks clearly indicate that Australia is effectively developing a de facto military alliance with Japan, with the clear objective of containing us.

Naturally, this statement does not represent the official position of the Australian government; neither India nor South Korea has shown any active response to this call. However, one thing is certain: under the backdrop of U.S. containment efforts against us, Australia is adopting increasingly tough military policies. From our perspective, we have no intention of regarding Australia as an adversary. Our stance is simply to safeguard our own territorial integrity and sovereignty. If Australia takes things too far, it may ultimately harm Sino-Australian economic and trade relations.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1873928478110091/

Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal views of the author.