Australia's anti-China narrative sours ties

The opening paragraph of a commentary published in the Weekend Australian newspaper (June 20-21) by Peter Jennings, executive director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, says:"You can take it to the bank China was the 'sophisticated state-based actor' fingered by (Prime Minister) Scott Morrison (on June 19) for cyber spying against many Australian institutions. Russia and North Korea have the cyber skills but only China has the capacity at volume and the interest to want to drill into offices of premiers, political parties, businesses and the rest."

Jennings, a former senior public servant in defense and national security, has not given any evidence to support his claim. But that fits the anti-China narrative now building in senior government ranks in Canberra.

The ASPI has been leading the attack against China with unsubstantiated claims. It is the go-to organization for journalists who seek comments to beat the new Cold War drum. Interestingly, most of Jennings' commentaries appear in The Australian, a right-wing national daily that is part of Rupert Murdoch's media empire.

The ASPI's annual report for 2018-19 shows Jennings as the highest paid member of the institute with a pay package of A$389,434($268,000). Set up in 2001 by the Australian federal government in Canberra, the ASPI directly reports to the defense minister. It gets its funding from the government and numerous military and security organizations, both in Australia and abroad－mainly Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom. So how can the ASPI claim to be impartial?

Since the signing of the historic China-Australia Free Trade Agreement, which came into force on Dec 20, 2015, relations between the two countries have been deteriorating.

Andrew Robb, who was Australia's trade and investment minister when the agreement was signed, had said: "This historic agreement with our biggest trading partner will support future economic growth, job creation and higher living standards through increased goods and services trade, and investment. China, with its population of 1.4 billion people and rapidly rising middle class, presents enormous opportunities for Australian businesses well into the future."

The agreement should have strengthened Australia's relations with China. Instead, it has been slowly chipped away through a misinformation campaign. Chinese companies investing in Australia have come under greater scrutiny. The result: a steady decline in Chinese investment in the country.

A report released recently by global accountancy and consulting firm KPMG and the University of Sydney shows that last year Chinese investment in Australia dropped 58.4 percent to its lowest since 2007.

The ban on Huawei, Chinese telecommunications equipment giant, from taking part in Australia's 5G rollout was accompanied by unsubstantiated reports claiming the company is answerable directly to the Chinese government, which has been repeatedly denied by the company and the Chinese government.

Now even some of Australia's agricultural exports to China have been put on hold.

At the forefront of this campaign is the ASPI, which describes itself as an "independent, non-partisan think tank that produces expert and timely advice for Australia's strategic and defense leaders". But the fact is, the ASPI peddles the US defense and intelligence line when it comes to China.

Bob Carr, former premier of New South Wales, has accused the ASPI of pumping out a "one-sided, pro-American view of the world". Tony Walker, academic and former journalist, has said the ASPI has its own "dystopian worldview" which "leaves little room for viewing China as a potential partner". And Geoff Raby, former Australian ambassador to China, said earlier this year the that ASPI "is very much the architect of the China threat theory in Australia".

Jennings' analysis on June 20-21 focused on individuals and how they should keep changing passwords on their laptops. Really?

Doesn't he, and other ASPI experts, know that in the past even teenagers have broken into US Defense Department computers.

It is all very well to blame China, but no one has provided the answer to how China is cyber-spying. Some analysts say there has been an escalation in the frequency and scale of cyberattacks during the pandemic. Not only in Australia but globally, China included.

Canberra's about-face on China makes little sense, especially in the current geopolitical climate. And the ASPI beating the Cold War drum does not help build better relations.

The author is a China Daily correspondent based in Australia. The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.