Japanese Ambassador Encourages Australia as It Continues Efforts to Downsize China Trade

Japanese Ambassador Encourages Australia as It Continues Efforts to Downsize China Trade
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison (L) talks with Japan's Ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami (C) after a virtual summit with Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio in Canberra on January 6, 2022, to mark the opening of a new chapter of defence and security cooperation between the two countries, with the signing of a Reciprocal Access Agreement. Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images
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Australia has started to follow Japan’s footsteps in diversifying trade away from China, according to Japan’s ambassador to Australia, who said he expects a closer partnership between the two countries in the metals and mining sectors as Australia’s second largest export market.

Yamagami Shingo, who assumed the post of Ambassador of Japan to Australia in December 2020, said Japan also had first-hand experience of China’s economic coercion 12 years ago, when the communist regime restricted exports of rare earth metals that were crucial for Japan’s high-tech industries.

He noted that following China’s rare earth exports ban, Japan searched for alternative sources and was able to reduced its dependence on Chinese suppliers from around 90 percent to 60 percent of its imports.

The move has, in turn, strengthened the economic relationship between Japan and Australia, as it involved the development of Western Australia’s Mount Weld mine that is operated by local mining company Lynas Corporation.

“I think this is a great testament to the importance of not putting all the eggs in one particular basket,” Shingo said during a visit to Western Australia.

“And this is, I think, exactly something that our friends in Australia are learning throughout the recent lessons of wine or coal or barley, timber, lobster… all those products which have been subjected to economic coercion.”

“Certainly, we would like to reduce our dependency more, and in that regard, any help coming from Australia would be more than welcome.”

He further added that as Japan is seeking a future with a “hydrogen economy,” Australia—with its ample land, sunshine, and proximity—would be “perfectly placed” to be a big exporter of hydrogen to Japan.

“If you are a student of history, throughout human history, eyes of doubt and suspicion have been cast upon the development of, for example, steel, oil, coal, LNG, whatever,” he noted.

“I firmly believe that hydrogen is the future. This is not in abstract terms, it’s in concrete terms.”

His comment comes as Australia continues to diversify its trading partners and decouple from China. On Thursday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison praised a “historic” trade deal with India as being good for producers of seafood, wine, and other produce and resources as the country inks a deal.

“This is great news for lobster fishers in Tasmania, wine producers in South Australia, macadamia farmers in Queensland, critical minerals miners in Western Australia,” Morrison said.

He said the agreement with India builds on the two countries’ security partnership and their joint efforts to maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific, along with Quad partners America and Japan, in the face of Beijing’s aggression, belligerence, and ambitions to reshape the region.
Caden Pearson contributed to this report. 
Nina Nguyen
Author
Nina Nguyen is a reporter based in Sydney. She covers Australian news with a focus on social, cultural, and identity issues. She is fluent in Vietnamese. Contact her at [email protected].
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