Shadow Foreign Minister Simon Birmingham says the federal opposition is pleased to see trade resume with Beijing, but Australia must also stand firmly on its democratic principles.
Birmingham spoke on ABC Radio National on the back of news Beijing had decided to allow Australia to export live rock lobsters after a years-long ban.
The decision comes after a meeting between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese Communist Party Premier Li Qiang on Oct. 10 on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit in Laos.
The lifting of the ban on live rock lobster exports ends years of trade disputes that Birmingham says never should have happened.
Beijing claimed to have found heavy metals inside Australian lobsters, a claim Australia’s government denied.
The move came amid a flurry of coercive trade sanctions placed on Australian exports by Beijing after the former Morrison government called for an independent investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
The ban resulted in some fishermen having to stop their trade, Seafood Industry Australia CEO Veronica Papacosta said.
“Combined with the cost of business and the inflationary period we have now, it’s been a really tough time,” she told AAP.
While Birmingham said the trade agreement was positive, he said Australia also needed to stick to its principles in its relationship with Beijing.
The shadow minister noted that there would always be differences in values.
“They are a global power, and they will be for as far as the eye can see and conduct in terms of military exercises that are risky, confrontational and present a chance of conflict emerging is not the way that a responsible global power should engage,” Birmingham said.
“An approach that I would take as foreign minister, that the Dutton government would take and is one of being principled and predictable in our engagement with China, we should stand up for Australia’s values interests and address those issues of concern.”
Birmingham said Australia needed to continue a respectful relationship with nations such as the Philippines and Taiwan to form a united front when dealing with Beijing.
The shadow minister said Albanese had been slow to comment on some national security issues, such as the HMAS Toowoomba incident, where Australian naval officers sustained minor ear injuries after being subjected to sonar pulses from a Chinese Communist Party warship while on a United Nations mission in international waters near Japan.
Divers had been clearing fishing nets from the ship’s propellers when the warship used its sonar device, despite other vessels being cautioned that divers were underwater.
“I think China wonders whether Australia will stand as strongly in relation to identifying, speaking about those security concerns and risks in the region,” Birmingham said.
“It is a case of being absolutely consistent, clear and upfront about addressing the problems when we see them and trying to make sure that we work with our partners right across the region to emphasise to China that we all want to see a peaceful and stable region where others are respected.”
