Peter Varghese
Australia does not want to be put in the position where it has to choose between the US and China, the new head of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has declared.
In his first major public speech since taking over as DFAT secretary, Peter Varghese said: “The challenge for all of us is to help prevent a US-China faultline running through Asia. Conflict between the US and China would be a disaster for everyone: the US, China, the region and the world.”
Mr Varghese took up his new post two months ago.
“We wish to see a strong and stable US-China relationship, and we will do all we can to support it,” he told Asialink in Melbourne last night.
He said that economic interdependence would work, up to a point, in keeping the US and China from an adversarial relationship. “But it is no guarantee,” he added.
China had become the largest trading partner of 124 countries, Mr Varghese said, whereas the US was now the leading partner of 76 economies, down from 127 five years ago. Mr Varghese said Australian interests were best served by a stable balance of power in Asia that encouraged economic integration, was inclusive in membership and looked outward.
“Our strongest partner in securing these objectives is the US with whom we share both interests and values. This intersection of interests and values is also true of our relationships with Japan, India, Indonesia and Korea.”
The primary burden of managing stability in Asia, he said, would fall on “bilateral relationships and smaller networks of relationships among the major powers of the region.”
He views “the Indo-Pacific, rather than East Asia or even the Asia-Pacific, as the crucible of Australian security”, and includes our top nine trading partners.
“It connects the Indian and Pacific Oceans, thereby underlining the crucial role that the maritime environment is likely to play in our future strategic and defence planning,” Mr Varghese said.
Source: The Australian – “Task to avert China-US split”Related articles
- Australian Prime Minister to mend fences with China (craighill.net)
- Chinese official tells Australia: it’s us or America (chinadailymail.com)
- China blocks Aussie official’s Tibet visit (news.theage.com.au)
- China shoehorns its way into the U.S.-Australia relationshiship (forbes.com)
- Day will come when we must choose US or China (smh.com.au)
Craig Hill Media and Consulting 
Reblogged this on Dogma and Geopolitics and commented:
When the SHIT will hit the fan DO WE HAVE TO CHOSE ?….I chose China for Economic reasons, instead Imperialist Wars, Illegal invasions, Divide & Conquer strategies & Greed….TeeeeHeeee
Posted by Old Fart | February 20, 2013, 21:26Wouldn’t you think that a nation which fought so hard and spent so much money to get into the UN Security Council (regardless of how tainted are the selection criteria!) would consider itself mature enough to be able to manage quality relations between both these nations? How pathetically myopic and ill-prepared are we for the global changes washing through the world that so many pundits actually believe we must choose one or the other. Australia led the world in recognising the People’s Republic of China (go, Gough, you good thing) and we have demonstrated our bona fides to America by fighting in every war they’ve had since WWII. We have nothing left to prove to either – or both. But we could show the world how to behave intelligently if we could just control our fawning cultural cringe.
Posted by David M. Russell | February 21, 2013, 14:55