US Secretary of State Antony Blinken takes part in a joint press availability at the Quad meeting of foreign ministers in Melbourne, Australia, Feb 11, 2022. (KEVIN LAMARQUE / POOL PHOTO VIA AP)
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s recent visit to Australia, from Feb 9-11, left some analysts wondering about Washington’s focus on the region during a more pressing geopolitical crisis in Eastern Europe.
In Australia, Blinken attended the fourth Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Melbourne on Feb 11. The Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, includes the US, Japan, Australia, and India.
“It is baffling,” said Australian sinologist professor Colin Mackerras, emeritus professor at Griffith University.
“Especially when you consider US posturing over the Ukraine and its repeated claims the Russians are about to invade.
Some analysts have suggested US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to Australia had more to do with economic and trade issues, and the US efforts to counter China’s growing influence in the Asia-Pacific region
“You would think that (Europe) would be his focus of attention and not Asia Pacific,” he told China Daily.
Indeed, the crisis in Ukraine has little or no relevance to the Asia-Pacific region.
Some analysts have suggested Blinken’s trip had more to do with economic and trade issues, and the US efforts to counter China’s growing influence in the region.
Taiwan’s membership of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), now called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), is a case in point.
The US, under then president Donald Trump, withdrew from the TPP in 2017. The CPTPP comprises 11 nations – Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam.
The US has been pushing for Taiwan’s admission to the CPTPP, knowing full well the Chinese mainland, which has also applied to join, would oppose such a move.
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United States' Secretary of State Antony Blinken (left), Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne (second left), Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) pose for photo during a meeting of the Quad foreign ministers in Melbourne, Australia on Feb 11, 2022. (SANDRA SANDERS / POOL VIA AP)
When US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Australia for the Quad talks, he conducted a series of ‘exclusive’ interviews to drum up support for the US’ claims that Russia is about to invade Ukraine. At the same time, he also beat the anti-China Cold War drum
As one analyst, who did not want to be named, said: “You need all members of the CPTPP to agree on membership. Even though the US is not a member, it still has a great deal of influence.
“Canada and Mexico, for example, have a major free trade agreement with the US and stand to lose a great deal if they agree to China’s membership.”
The analyst added: “I would suspect a lot of pressure is also being applied on Australia and Japan, both of which are solid US allies in the Asia Pacific region and members of the CPTPP and Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to be more proactive (on Taiwan’s membership in the CPTPP).”
“At the end of the day, it is all about politics and influence and not about trade.”
China is a member of the 15-nation RCEP, which is the world’s largest trading bloc, covering nearly a third of the global economy.
The RCEP comprises the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as South Korea, China, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.
United States' Secretary of State Antony Blinken (left), Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne (second left), Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison (center), India's Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar and Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) meet in Melbourne on Feb 11, 2022, as part of Quad meetings. (DARRIAN TRAYNOR / POOL PHOTO VIA AP)
The joint statement issued after the meeting did not mention the Ukraine. In the joint press conference, Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, unlike Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, refused to endorse Blinken’s attack on Russia
When Blinken arrived in Australia for the Quad talks, he conducted a series of ‘exclusive’ interviews to drum up support for the US’ claims that Russia is about to invade Ukraine. At the same time, he also beat the anti-China Cold War drum.
In an interview with The Australian, the right-wing national newspaper, on Feb 11, Blinken said: “To my mind, there’s little doubt that China’s ambition over time is to be the leading military, economic, diplomatic and political power and not just in the region but in the world.”
The Quad meeting produced nothing of substance. All four countries reiterated what they had said before and promised to speed up delivery of COVID-19 vaccine to Pacific nations which are still waiting for deliveries from the last Quad meeting.
The joint statement issued after the meeting did not mention the Ukraine. In the joint press conference, Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, unlike Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, refused to endorse Blinken’s attack on Russia.
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Jaishankar dodged the issue by declaring the Quad “was for something, not against someone”. He said it was focused on the Indo-Pacific region and referred to India’s position, elaborated in the UN Security Council earlier in the month.
karlwilson@chinadailyapac.com