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Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Sanya, China. Photo: Alex Ellinghausen |
BO’AO, CHINA: Australian Prime Minister Mr.Tony Abbott has praised communist China's economic achievement of lifting millions out of poverty and lauded the idea of individuals becoming wealthy while addressing the Bo’ao business forum in southern China.
But despite heading up a senior business delegation of top CEOs at the forum, and the prominent stated goal of progressing a landmark free trade deal, the Prime Minister Mr. Abbott said the overriding objective of his visit remained the hope of becoming a “true friend” of China.
Invoking Deng Xiaoping, the former Chinese leader widely credited for inspiring China’s first wave of economic reforms that have lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty and into a booming middle-class, Mr Abbott said “to get rich is indeed glorious – but to be a true friend is sublime”.
"Australia is not in China to do a deal, but to be a friend," he said.
In a region wracked with diplomatic tensions, territorial disputes and geopolitical rivalries, a consistent theme of Mr Abbott’s week-long visit through Japan, Korea and China has been his desire to “make friends rather than pick fights''.
"We don’t just visit because we need to, but because we want to,” he said. “Our region and our world need peace and understanding based on international law and mutual respect.
“Australia’s preference is always to look forwards rather than backwards; to win friends rather than find fault; to be helpful, not difficult.”
Mr Abbott’s call for friendship bears some similarities to the infamous speech made by former prime minister Kevin Rudd, delivered in Mandarin, at Peking University in 2009, where he expressed the desire to become a zhengyou, or a firm friend that is able to provide forthright criticism. Mr Rudd then proceeded to criticise China’s human rights record. It also bears comparison to Mr Abbott’s declaration late last year that Japan was Australia’s “best friend in Asia”, which raised eyebrows in Beijing.
Mr Abbott’s speech, however, was altogether more cautious, emphasising the closeness of Australia and China, who benefit greatly from that relationship.
"Team Australia is here in China to help build the Asian Century. China, after all, has taken to heart Deng Xiaoping’s advice that “to get rich is glorious. And China should be richer still, thanks to Premier Li’s reforms.”
Having landed in China 24 hours earlier, on the third and final leg of his North Asia charm and trade offensive, the Australian prime minister went to lengths to reassure any bruised Chinese feelings over being last country on the tour, and last to sign a free trade deal with Australia. That will not be a remedied on this visit, but Australian officials say a China FTA is on the cards this year.
Mr. Abbott said it was not the past difficulties that should define the future but mutual interests.
"Indeed, the comparison of our region’s pre-war and post-war history abundantly demonstrates that we will all advance together – or we won’t advance at all," he said.
"Australia’s preference is always to look forwards rather than backwards; to win friends rather than to find fault; to be helpful, not difficult.''
Mr Abbott arrived on Wednesday to a ceremonial welcome from Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in the resort town of Sanya in Hainan province. His meeting with Mr Li was widely reported across China's state-run media, with particular emphasis on the two leaders discussing the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. Mr Li, who is conversant in English, thanked Mr Abbott for Australia's efforts in co-ordinating the Indian Ocean search.
He also reiterated China's desire to accelerate free trade negotiations, but raised the need for Australia to "continue to provide a fair environment for Chinese inbound investment".
"Signing a bilateral FTA as soon as possible is an important consensus being shared between China and Australia," Li said, according to China's official news agency Xinhua. "We hope both sides carry forward the talks in a pragmatic approach, make mutual concessions and ensure mutual benefits.''
The Xinhua report said Mr Abbott hailed the visit to China as the "climax and highlight" of his trip to North Asia.
Meanwhile, in the US, Treasurer Joe Hockey has urged China to move more quicky to deregulate its currency.
Mr Hockey is in Washington for a meeting of the Group of 20 nations’ finance ministers, before Brisbane hosting the leaders’ summit in November.
US Treasury secretary Jack Lew said in an interview just before the meeting that China needed to get back on a path of a market-determined exchange rate.
Mr Hockey said all nations should be encouraging China to move to full deregulation and open trading of its currency.
‘‘The Chinese government has come a very long way in a relatively short period of time in relation to the renminbi and importantly in opening up the Chinese economy,’’ Mr Hockey told CNBC.
‘‘We all want it to move quicker but when you reflect carefully on what has happened over the last decade, there has been a lot of movement.’’
Mr Hockey said he was more bullish about the future of the Chinese and European economies than some other finance ministers.
‘‘There will be a recovery,’’ he said.‘‘The question is how we can facilitate that without creating dislocations that continue to create further instability in capital markets.’’
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